Winter Ultratravel 2015

ultratravel

WINTER 2015

TheTelegraph Telegraph The

WINTER in JAPAN

heli pads Hopping between New Zealand’s hottest lodges

first lady of france Inès de la Fressange’s guide to Paris

turning left Inside the world’s best first-class cabins

ultratravel

R ehabilitated tuRtles aRe RetuRned to the a Rabian G ulf, d ubai One of many enriching Jumeirah experiences.

Creating the world’s most luxurious hotel made us think differently.

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contents Winter 2015

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Regulars 15 Editor’s letter Sometimes you need more than Lady Luck to discover wintery wonderlands, says Charles Starmer-Smith 17 The next big thing A potential Martian habitat, an almostaffordable two-person plane, plus London clubs with rooms 21 Ultra experts The coolest downhill-to-dinner fashion, tip-top travellers’ gadgets, and beautifully Brazilian bling 26 Aficionado Dutch designer Marcel Wanders describes his globetrotting highs, from Agra to Amalfi 28 Upfront When writing Proust may have found inspiration in noisy places, but it is peace that John Simpson craves 71 Intelligence George Clooney and Rande Gerber’s tequila masterclass; inside The Broad, LA’s brand-new eye-popping art gallery; Cecil Rhodes’ refurbished Cape Town home; and this season’s most lavish European ski chalets

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38

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74 Travelling life Although he has stayed in some fabulous places for work, the well-journeyed German actor Daniel Brühl prefers to sleep under canvas on holiday

Features 30 Snow motion From skiing down a volcano to sampling a slow train journey to Hokkaido, Japan offers a plethora of winter activities. Charles Starmer-Smith samples the slopes and the sushi, while Tokyo correspondent Danielle Demetriou recommends seven other snowy treats 38 Loving that limin’ Nigel Richardson is not alone in being a convert to the charms of St Kitts – or its beautiful Kittitians. The superyacht-owners have arrived, too 46 Belle of both Banks Model and muse Inès de la Fressange reveals her favourite Parisian haunts 56 Heaven and helis Soaring over fantastic landscapes in a helicopter and landing at New Zealand’s new luxury lodges is a thrilling double whammy, says Tim Jepson 65 Million-pound prizes Vote for the best people and places in travel and win one of 27 luxury holidays 66 Turning left John Arlidge reviews BA’s new First Class cabin and compares five other top-flight offerings

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© Telegraph Media Group Limited 2015. Published by TELEGRAPH MEDIA GROUP, 111 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 0DT, and printed by Polestar UK Limited.

Colour reproduction by groupfmg.com. Not to be sold separately from The Daily Telegraph. Ultratravel is a registered trademark licensed to The Daily Telegraph by PGP Media Limited

ultratravel 13

N OV EM B ER 14 2015

TRAIL BLAZER For a decade I had travelled the globe in search of elusive powder. “Shame, you should have been here last week/month/season” had become the familiar refrain. Tired of being greeted by patchy snow, I decided it was time to take luck out of the equation. So, one Thursday in early February, I sat in front of my computer, switched on the global forecast, and vowed to travel to wherever the most snow was going to fall that weekend. The answer? Niseko, Japan.

The new morning I booked my fights, packed my bags, boarded the plane and headed east. The result? Epic.

Let this winter issue be your aid to cheating Lady Luck.

Editor

Contributors ines de la FRessanGe

COVER Photographer Joe Plimmer; Styling Arabella Boyce; Art Direction Johnny Morris; Hair and Make-Up Krystle Gohel; Model Naty at Next Models

FOR THE LATEST IN LUXURY TRAvEL telegraph.co.uk/ luxurytravel

Frequenting stylish haunts goes with the territory for this former Chanel model, who for Ultratravel guides us round her top Parisian hotspots.

This winter she’d like to be back at the Paris Ritz, but it’s still closed for refurbishment.

“If not there, then I’d love to go to India, which is always magical.”

tim JePson

Though he has more than 20 books to his name, this inveterate traveller hasn’t quite seen it all. Next?

Easter Island. “An almost impossibly remote place, filled with monuments to a people whose rise and fall remain among the world’s most beguiling mysteries.”

JoHn aRlidGe

Spending time close to home is this frequent flier’s idea of a dream holiday. Christmas will find him at the Butler’s Cottage at Highclere Castle, better known as Downton Abbey. That makes him Mr Carson, and his other half, former BBC Economics Editor Stephanie Flanders, Mrs Hughes. They will not, he says, be dressing in character.

Raymond PatRick

The New York-based photographer has shot in 300 cities in 45 countries, including Japan for this issue. After spending weeks capturing ski-life last January, he’s desperate to get back to the Alps, “not just for the stunning scenery but also for the après-ski – the perfect winter combination”.

danielle demetRiou

Dreams of minimalist architecture and non-stop sushi prompted this Londoner to head to Tokyo in 2007.

From there, she’s written for publications from The Wall Street Journal to Kinfolk.

When it’s cold, the far-flung Okinawa islands are her dream destination “for the sunshine, the mouth-popping umi budo seaweed and the islanders’ perfection of the slow life”.

ultratravel Editor Charles Starmer-Smith Creative director Johnny Morris Deputy editor Lisa Grainger Photography editor Joe Plimmer Contributing editor John O’Ceallaigh Sub editors Kate Quill, Vicki Reeve, Tim Jepson, Steven King Executive publisher for Ultratravel Limited Nick Perry Publisher Toby Moore Advertising inquiries 07768 106322 (Nick Perry) 020 7931 3039 (Chelsea Bradbury) Ultratravel, 111 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 0DT Twitter @TeleLuxTravel

ultratravel 15

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the next BIG THING

A Martian dwelling, bold Brazilian building, fancy fights and hot hotels – just some of the happenings on our radar. Compiled by John O’Ceallaigh

LIfe ON MARS

C

ould holidaying on Mars become a reality in generations to come? Flowing water has already been discovered on the planet, and Nasa’s 3-D Printed Habitat Challenge Design Competition recently tasked architects worldwide with designing a Martian base that could accommodate four astronauts. The abode, which would be built using 3-D printing, would utilise indigenous materials sourced on the planet itself.

Beating 165 other proposals (including one by Foster + Partners, which came second), the Ice House design, by the New York firms SEArch and Clouds AO, would be built in a region where water was abundant. A semi-translucent ice shell is designed to act as a barrier to radiation while enabling some light to penetrate an internal pod complete with living quarters, allowing residents to live above ground and to enjoy some semblance of daylight rather than being burrowed below the surface and immersed in perpetual darkness.

Outlandish though the plans may seem, geologists, astrophysicists and scientists acted as consultants as SEArch and Clouds AO developed their design and Nasa’s stamp of approval gives further credibility to their assertion that this could well be a most unconventional holiday home in decades to come. marsicehouse.com

RED SKY AT NIGHT Clockwise from above: the Ice House as it might look in situ; a cross section; a model showing the inner workings of the house; the Red Planet

FOR THE LATEST IN LUXURY TRAvEL telegraph.co.uk/ luxurytravel

ultratravel 17

the next BIG THING PRivATE PANORAMA The new A5, a two-seater amphibious sport plane

on tre nd

Pyjama Parties Twenty years after Soho House launched in central London, the concept of members’ clubs with rooms has expanded considerably, some more exclusive than others.

The Arts Club (pictured below), the latest in London to allow guests to wear pyjamas under their roof, now has 16 bedrooms and suites, handsomely finished with American-walnut floors and featuring elegant Art Deco-style bathrooms. While rooms can be

hig h achi evers America’s Federal Aviation Administration created the Light Sport Aircraft category in 2004 in an effort to make private air travel more accessible. In doing so, it gave a legislative green light to developers who wished to design and build easy-to-fly, (relatively) affordable two-person planes.

Founded in response to the ruling, the manufacturer Icon Aircraft has now

booked only by the Mayfair club’s

launched its first plane, the A5. An amphibious sport aircraft that can take off and touch down on both land and water, the vehicle is cleared to fly at lower altitudes and in less congested airspace than conventional aircraft, so should offer its privileged passengers peerless panoramas of the landscapes below.

Since the first customer took delivery

members, friends are permitted to stay

of an A5 in July, feedback has been good.

Jack Pelton, former CEO of Cessna Aircraft, called it “incredibly easy to fly, safe, forgiving, and ridiculously fun”. More than 1,500 customers have paid deposits towards a £122,000 A5 of their own and should soon join the select, but growing, few who can boast about flying privately. iconaircraft.com

(for £600 and up, excluding breakfast).

Earlier this year, Covent Garden’s Hospital Club also opened 15 bedrooms. Designed by Russell Sage, they are a homely delight with a playful, tasteful Seventies theme.

hoT new hoTeLs

The countdown to the 2016 Olympics has begun. And Rio will have more than athletic endeavour with which to wow visitors. Chief among its new attractions will be the audacious Museum of Tomorrow at Mauá Pier, by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. Its theme?

The possibilities of the next 50 years: a topic that that will remain pertinent long after the Games have ended.

18 ultratravel

years after its original opening in 2012, the resurrected property features a kids’ club, spa and a ski-in, ski-out restaurant.

For those wishing to escape the cold, a short flight to Four Seasons Casablanca, opening this month, offers sea views, poolside lounge and November temperatures of up to 21°C. Further afield, clifftop Amanera (below, opening this month) is Aman Resorts’ first Dominican Republic property, and has an

oceanfront golf course.

More retail opportunities are accessible at the new St Regis Dubai, a Beaux Artsinspired hotel in a resort with residential towers and Las Vegas-style theatre.

For something completely different, Sri Lanka’s Chena Huts features 14 wooden cabins with palm-leaf roofs and private pools. The intimate resort stands between Yala National Park and the Indian Ocean and promises complete relaxation to guests from December.

Timber canopies run up the wall and curl over beds, Scandi cabinets support old dial phones and, at around 7pm, a barman with trolley comes to mix an in-room cocktail. Non-members are welcome to book, and can use the club’s facilities while in situ.

Non-members can also stay at one of Home House’s traditional rooms; night owls might enjoy a drink at the Zaha Hadid-designed bar, while early risers or more virtuous types can instead use the gym.

Big things are expected from The Devonshire Square Club when it opens in the City next year.

ILLuSTRATION ROBERT SHADBOLT

w he n Tom o r row com e s

Those wishing to embrace the cold will receive a warm welcome at two contrasting European ski resorts. The only new opening in Courchevel this season, White 1921 Courchevel, is a 25-bedroom boutique property, with chic interiors and stylish clientele a given – it’s the latest property to be opened by LVMH Hotel Management. Also launching in December, the long-awaited El Lodge is situated in Sierra Nevada, Europe’s most southerly ski resort. Burnt down two

Occupying a six-storey, 18th-century townhouse, the club will incorporate 68 bedrooms alongside a screening room, library and lounge. Unlike many old members’ clubs, women will be welcomed too. Just no pipes or slippers.

PhotograPhed at the roca London gaLLery (rocaLondongaLLery.com). PhotograPher Joe PLimmer; StyLing arabeLLa boyce; hair and make-UP kryStLe goheL; modeL naty at next modeLS

U LT RA FAS H I O N Cream down quilted jacket £1,415, Moncler (020 7235 0857; moncler. com). Black stretch-leather trousers £2,210, Emilio Pucci (020 7022 0828; matchesfashion.com). Blue cashmere sweater £390, Esk (020 7022 0828; matchesfashion.com). Black patentleather moon boots £675, Jimmy Choo (020 7493 5858; jimmychoo. com). Black studded-leather gloves £228, DVF (020 7499 0886; dvf.com).

White ski goggles £243, Chanel (020 7493 5040; chanel.com).

Wireless headphones £239.95, Bose (bose.co.uk). Graphite, carbon and copper skis £1,300, Volant (020 7420 1444; snowandrock.com)

WHITE MISCHIEF

Combine high-fashion accessories with down and cashmere and what you get is a ski outfit that’s both fun and functional, and a look that will allow you to slip between slopes and après-ski with no effort at all, says Arabella Boyce ultratravel 21

U LTRA Tech

Clockwise from top left Deepflight Dragon submarine

Instead of traditional ballast tanks, this personal submarine has six electric thrusters that enable the craft both to hover and “fly” underwater. Pilots need only a seven-day training course to operate it ($1.5m/£972,000; 001 510 236 3422; deepflight.com). aDiDas urban hiking boots

These hiking boots are the first to come with Adidas’s Boost cushioning foam in the soles, giving them the same comfort as its running trainers. The breathable upper Climawarm layer traps warm air to keep feet dry, while the hardy rubber sole provides grip in slippery conditions (£120; 0800 279 4144; adidas.co.uk). richpeoplethings cork surfboarD

This surfboard was born from a desire to recycle some of the 2,500 tons of cork stoppers discarded annually in Spain. The Murcia-based company glues the corks with beeswax, to ensure they are as environmentally friendly as possible, and finishes them with bioresin. There are eight surfboard designs to choose from (€3,500/£1,850; richpeoplethings.net). leica ultraviD binoculars

A collaboration between luxury German optics maker Leica and Italian design house Zagato, these limited-edition binoculars have an aluminium outer shell with dozens of fine grooves milled into its surface. This provides extra grip and complements the red anodised rings on the front lenses (£2,465; 020 7629 1351; leica-storemayfair.co.uk).

Johammer electric bike

This futuristic electric 1.200 motorbike has an unusually shaped chassis for a reason: its low centre of gravity allows it to pack enough batteries to give the bike an impressive 125-mile range. Like Tesla’s electric cars, the Johammer features regenerative braking, which uses the motion of its wheels downhill to help charge its battery (€24,900/£18,450; 0043 7213 8204; johammer.com). o six hunDreD kayak

Inspired by traditional Inuit boat design, this elegant kayak comes ready to assemble in 42 pieces. The plywood ribs snap together without the need for tools and are covered by a waterproof, translucent carbon shell that ensures the kayak glides easily and weighs only 22lb (AU$2,200/£1,035; osixhundred.com). spacelife winter Jacket

This spacesuit-inspired jacket is packed with technology to help its wearer thrive in wintery conditions. Its trilobal fibres are both waterproof and highly reflective and the hood contains a microphone and Bluetooth speakers that can be controlled from a smartphone or audio controls in one sleeve (€1,500/£1,100; spacelife.nl).

FAST MOTION

Mark Wilson tracks down the latest boats, boots, binoculars and bikes taking travellers into the future 22 ultratravel

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Rugged and reďŹ ned in equal measure. E T T I N G E R . T O E A C H T H E I R O W N .

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ULTRA gem s

South American jewellers are crafting fluid pieces that sparkle with creativity – and some of the finest stones on Earth, says Caragh McKay

Brazilian brilliance

Rui Mendes

Ara Vartanian’s 18-carat gold three-finger ring with green tourmaline and brown and white diamonds. POA (07818 062891; aravartanian.com)

A RA VA RTA nIA n

Although steeped in the traditions of fine jewellery in Brazil, the São Paulo-born designer Ara Vartanian makes pieces that have a rock ’n’ roll vibe more in tune with the fashion set of his second home, London. The city is somewhere, he says, in which his “creativity is sharpened, a place that pushes design boundaries without forgetting its links to the past”. He is still respectful, though, of classic artisanship. “My creative process is all about developing a connection to the gem and respecting it through the design of the structure,” he says. “I spend time sourcing unique stones, a challenge that sometimes takes years.”

H sT e R n

Fe RnA nD O JORg e

No one has reinterpreted Brazilian style with such brio as H Stern. Its eponymous founder may be German, but this is a jewellery house inspired by the exuberance of Brazil.

Everything from the man-made and natural environments to the easy-going beach spirit of Rio informs its collections. H Stern is celebrating its 70th year with a new line that plays on its name – stern is German for star.

Eclipse-inspired earrings in yellow and noble gold with cognac diamonds, £3,500, Harrods Fine Jewellery Room (020 7730 1234; harrods.com)

“Sensuality, energy and movement” are the elements that fuse to create Fernando Jorge’s designs, which draw on the indigenous stones and jewellery-making techniques of Brazil. His reputation as an imaginative craftsman is particularly evident in his latest Stream collection, whose forms interpret “liquid streams gently swirling over smooth surfaces” and are Brazilian to the core.

Stream Open Ring in 18-carat rose gold and chalcedony, £5,120, Net-a-Porter (0800 044 5700; net-a-porter.com)

L I LY gA B R I eL LA Memories of summers spent in Alto da Boa Vista and the mountains of Rio resonate in the designs of Lily Gabriella, the fine-jewellery line established by the young Brazilian Lily Elia four years ago. This connection is reflected in the finely crafted waves and deep-blue sapphires of the designer’s Collection IV pieces. Cuff in 18-carat rose gold and sapphires, £13,650 (020 7243 3232; lilygabriella.com)

ultratravel 25

the AFICIONADO

Designer Marcel Wanders on his love of the Middle East, strange candy packaging and Airbnb – and why words matter more than fine food

T

he 52-year-old Dutchman is a prolific designer of hotels, products and interiors, with more than 1,700 projects to his name

for companies from Alessi and Swarovski to Puma. Having co-founded the company Moooi, in which, he says, “the coldness of industrialism is replaced by the poetry, fantasy and romance of different ages, and vividly brought to life in the contemporary moment”, he turned his eye to creating the interiors of several designer hotels, including the Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht, the Kameha Grand Zürich and the Mondrian South Beach in Miami.

1

I love the Middle East. Often, as Westerners, we go with expectations. But if you take the

time to talk to people, it is so different from what you expect. There is an open-mindedness you don’t find in many parts of the world. Doha is high on my list of places everyone should moooi; hg eSCh

visit – especially I M Pei’s Museum of Islamic Art (mia.org.qa).

2

incredible. The staff are impeccable. it is

connections in my brain. It makes me

generosity: of museums that share

culturally connected. And it has a serenity

wake up and think I’ll never settle for

works, of private collectors who open

that’s connected to its class and

less – or makes me sad that some

their spaces for the world to see.

sophistication. it gives you an automatic

things are unloved. Generally, though,

freedom just to be. When you wake up –

I feel super-excited about the fact that

hopefully with someone wonderful next

we are continuously building a new

to you – and see the Taj mahal, there is no

world together.

8

The most amazing hotel ever is The oberoi Amarvilas (oberoihotels.com) in Agra, india. The design is

better place to be.

3

I don’t go to cities to look at architecture. I go for the people,

i was born in the Netherlands, where people have no real appreciation of nature; it’s just something around.

i learnt to love it from my Swedish ex-

6

There are so many good

girlfriend, who had a deep love of forests

museums to visit. The Picasso

and mountains. it was a wonderful gift.

museum (museepicassoparis.fr),

convenience stores and at packaging in

musée Rodin (musee-rodin.fr) in

candy stores, to watch how people dress,

Paris. The Dalí Theatre-museum

what motorcycles they ride, how they sit

(salvador-dali.org) in Figueres.

9

in a bus. I love those little things. They

The Prado (museodelprado.es) in

I am, so have to be helped. If I’m on

tell me more about a city than stacks

madrid. of all artists, Wim Delvoye

of concrete.

(wimdelvoye.be) is one of my greatest

4

heroes. And i wish i’d seen the

the culture, to look in little

musée d’orsay (musee-orsay.fr) and

If I am travelling on business, and busy, I need a hotel that offers a full service. I am exhausted, I am

on super-speed and I don’t know where WAnDErs’ WOnDErs Haruki Murakami sculpture at Versailles and Moooi horse lamp (above); a ceiling at the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha (below)

holiday, I like strangeness, so I’ll stay in an Airbnb (airbnb.co.uk). They have their own flavour and style, and oddness is

if i could own any piece of art it

exhibition in Versailles of haruki

what you need sometimes.

would be the group of sculptures by

murakami. The images i’ve seen

Willem de Kooning in the centre of

have blown me away.

I think that ownership is the

10

least interesting part of our

restaurants serving the most exquisite

Rotterdam. They’re so wicked and strong.

Whenever i’m in the city i visit them, and lie beside them. i’ve even had daydreams of spiriting them away in a big truck.

7

I am not a buyer of things.

There is nowhere else like Amalfi, in italy. The coast is so beautiful, the landscape is

wonderful, and there are the tiniest

5

lives. Picasso’s Guernica was the

food. however, i am not really a foodie.

I’m not inspired by specific things.

best thing he ever made. It is framed

i love people and conversations. if you ask

I’ve seen enough of the world so

well, it is hung well and we can

me what the discussions were about over

that, if you tied me up in a chair

all go and see it. We take pictures

dinner i can tell you. But i can’t tell you

and blindfolded me, I’d still be inspired

of it and the whole world can

about the food. So, while i like wonderful

from memory. But travelling stirs my

enjoy it, learn from it, and keep it in

tastes, they don’t make my day.

soul and helps sometimes to make

our hearts and brains. I love that

Interview by Lisa Grainger

26 ultratravel

John Simpson

I

’ve experienced some rough things in my life: massacres, bombings, executions. I’ve been hunted through the streets by one crowd, just escaped being torn to pieces by another, subjected to a mock execution by a third, dragged out to be shot by a fourth before being rescued. I’ve even survived 50 years of BBC management.

So what do I dream about at night?

None of the above, fortunately. After one “friendly fire” incident, my producer and I, shaken by watching 19 other people burned alive, limped across Iraq for days, talking obsessively about the whole thing until we’d bored ourselves stupid. After that, we got back to our usual topic, the iniquities of our editor, and felt a whole lot better. A psychiatrist I met said this was the finest therapy imaginable; but, of course, she didn’t know our editor.

My worst and most frequent nightmare, even now at the age of 71, is the scholarship exam I took at Oxford back in 1962. In fact, I didn’t do too badly, though I ended up at Cambridge instead (I’d never have the brainpower to get into either place today, of course). But something about that long, dark Oxford hall, and the creak of the invigilator’s shoes and the dreariness of the question on 17th-century diplomacy, has stayed with me ever since. Recently I went with my wife to a concert at Exeter College, where the exam took place. She wanted me to show her the hall, but my nerve broke and we went for a drink instead.

Which makes it all the weirder that we should have come to Oxford to settle. We maintain it’s because of the quality of the

28 ultratravel

schools, of course, but in my case something very different is at work: the requirement to live somewhere peaceful.

I don’t care where I go for work: Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, north-eastern Nigeria – anywhere. But at home I want a bit of quiet and calm. Of course, if all you know about Oxford and its surroundings comes from watching Inspector Morse and Midsomer Murders, you’ll assume the killing rate here is at Guatemalan levels.

Yet, in reality, entire households here are not being wiped out by embittered former mistresses, nor even by the local vicar.

“Worst thing in Oxford is the gangs,” said a taxi-driver the other day. “Gangs?”

I was appalled. “Yeah, you know, the ones that go round nicking bikes.” Ah. Jonathan Swift liked to write in the coffee houses of Oxford, London and Dublin; James Joyce preferred working at the kitchen table with his impoverished family shouting and yelling all round him.

Once, when I had a book to write, we decamped for a month to a charming place on the Natal coast in South Africa called, yes, Ramsgate. It wasn’t entirely peaceful; two beaches away, a group of nine fishermen was mown down by submachine gun while we were there.

The house we were renting was the one in which Alan Paton wrote Cry, The Beloved Country, and I hoped a little of his success would rub off on me. There is, of course, a limit to this principle; I’m living now in the house where Aung San Suu Kyi settled before she went back to Burma, but I’m not expecting the Nobel Peace Prize.

Still, as Swift and Joyce showed, it’s possible to write anywhere. You can sit in

UP FRO N T

I’ve written one book under the shadow of Mount Etna, another looking out over the Languedoc, and a third in Zimbabwe

front of a blank wall like Graham Greene in Antibes, and still create an entire universe jammed with colour and activity.

Proust preferred a room lined with cork.

I happen to be writing this in an Oxford coffee house surrounded by students, but my head is down over the keys and loud music (Shostakovich, if you want to know) is thumping through my headphones.

I prefer it to being at home: a waitress will bring me a cup of tea whenever I need one, and there’s nothing to distract my butterfly-like attention. But the view’s better at home: I can sit and gaze out at the copper beeches and the grand red-brick houses. In Dublin, where we used to live, I had a sea view; it was like being in Ramsgate, only without the bloodshed.

But is this inspiring? Does the place where you write affect the quality of the writing? Apparently not. Nor does the time when you write. Both Greene and Somerset Maugham worked in the morning, then stopped for the day. Fantastic, if you earn enough from books to write full-time.

Most of us have a day job to attend to.

When I wrote my last book I had to roll out of bed at five every morning: fine if I’d gone to sleep at 11, but torture if I’d stayed up till two. Still, I genuinely couldn’t tell afterwards which passages I’d written when: all equally bad, I suppose.

I’ve written one book under the shadow of Mount Etna, another looking out over the Languedoc, and a third in Zimbabwe, where I’d crept in illegally to do some undercover filming. Now I’m working on a new one, here in Oxford. Maybe the treetops and coffee houses will work the necessary magic. Well, they did for Tolkien.

illustration Martin Haake; Portrait Henry iddon

As Graham Greene and Proust proved, you don’t have to be anywhere particularly beautiful to create an imaginary universe. But peace helps

THE SOLITARY LIFE A lone skier in Hokkaido, in northern Japan, and (inset) a miko, or Shinto ‘shrine maiden’ at the Meiji shrine in Tokyo

THE LAND OF SNOW aNd SaKE

Japan is a land of thrilling extremes, especially in winter. Charles Starmer-Smith skis Niseko’s unparallelled powder, then defrosts in an onsen, while Danielle Demetriou explores the country’s islands, discovering great warmth as well as cutting-edge cool, from grand trains and tea ceremonies to high-octane helitours

30 ultratravel

ultratravel 31

Dance The Team Members of LUX* help people to celebrate life with the most simple, fresh and sensory hospitality in the world.

M AU R I T I U S R E U N I O N M A L D I V E S C H I N A U . A . E ( 2 0 1 6 ) | L U X R E S O R T S . C O M

WINTER in japan

Skiing in niSEkO

E

very morning I would rise at dawn to gaze out of my hotel window as the clouds parted to reveal Mount Yotei in all its glory – a snow-capped volcano that looks so

quintessentially Japanese that it almost seems unreal. Below me, the same wizened old man in his blue overalls and fur-lined cap shovelled a foot of snow off the top of his truck.

In a place like Niseko, where 49ft of snow falls every winter, his was a Sisyphean struggle. He grimaced while I grinned, because for the skier it meant another day of champagne powder awaited, courtesy of the storms that sweep in from Siberia.

There is no resort on Earth quite like this part of north Hokkaido. Every morning I caught the first lift to carve fresh tracks through the deep snow, though there was no real need as the virgin powder persisted for much of the day. While the 35 miles of pistes cannot compare with the groomed expanses of Europe, the US and Canada, here it is the dry, light powder of the backcountry that is extraordinary, luring skiers eastwards from mid-December until the first sasa (bamboo shoots) poke through the melting snow in May. To warm up I would start each day with a sweep down Stairway To Heaven in Hanazono, flanked by forests of pine and birch, or tackle black runs such as Superstition and Misoshiru (miso soup), so named because you never quite know what you are going to get. Then it was up Mount An’nupuri to access the backcountry and descend eastwards through the challenging Back Bowls or the acres of terrain on the mountain’s western flanks.

In Niseko, the elbows-out scrum for every lift that is so often part of the Alpine experience from Val D’Isère to Verbier is replaced with short, orderly queues and unfailingly polite lift attendants who smile, bow and dust off your skis as they gently usher you on to the lift.

I started each day with black runs such as Misoshiru, or “Miso Soup”, so called because it’s said you never quite know what you are going to get

Even when the snow thickened and visibility dropped there was no need to call it a day. Instead, I beat a retreat to Strawberry Fields in Hanazono’s vast forests, home to some of the world’s best tree skiing (without a helicopter, at least). Here the silver birches, heavily clad with snow, form sculpted shapes that the locals call “juhyo” (ice monsters).

I fixed my gaze on the gaps between each trunk, trying not to be distracted by these other-worldly forms, as I bounced and floated through pillows of perfect powder, ready to jump on the lift and do it all again. Strawberry Fields forever, indeed.

MONSTER SLOPES Clockwise from above: Niseko’s snow-covered trees are known as ‘juhyo’, or ice monsters; the Zaborin Ryokan; Mount Yotei; and door into Rakuichi soba restaurant

If that is not adventure enough then you can don snowshoes to hike up Mont Yotei itself to go with the flow and surf inside its bowl-shaped crater. Either way ensure you retreat to the palliative waters of your chosen onsen to ease those tired limbs and wait for those flakes to fall once more.

Sapporo

Stay Pretty? No. Functional? Yes. The Green Leaf Niseko Village (thegreenleafhotel.com) and Hilton (placeshilton.com/nisekovillage) are the pick of Niseko’s main hotels. For something different try Zaborin (zaborin.com/en/), a luxury ryokan with

SEA OF JAPAN OKINAWA

JA PA N

clean lines and floor-to-ceiling glass in the Hanazono woods.

Eat If skiing is Niseko’s main draw then food comes a close second.

For fine dining try Asperges (hanazononiseko.com/en/asperges/)

HONSHU

Ishikawa Naoshima

in Hanazono, overseen by Michelin-starred chef Hiroshi Nakamichi, which offers a Japanese twist on French haute cuisine. For soba visit tiny and traditional Rakuichi, in Hirafu, which Anthony Bourdain still raves about. Sushi and sashimi?

Head for Hanayoshi, a laid-back and authentic Japanese

HOKKAIDO

Niseko

Diigata Mount Fuji

Kyoto SHIKOKU

Tokyo

Shuzenji PACIFIC OCEAN

KYUSHU 100 miles

restaurant 15 minutes outside Hirafu.

ultratravel 33

COLD COMFORTS Clockwise from far left: Lamp no Yado; a snow sculpture at the Sapporo Snow Festival; the tea ceremony at Camellia, Kyoto; and en route to a bird’s-eye view of Mount Fuji

(0081 3 3270 8800; mandarinoriental.com/tokyo/ hotel-offers/helicopter-flycation; from £5,200 for two, with one night in an Oriental Suite, breakfast, limousine transfers to the helipad, and a bottle of Ruinart Brut Rosé Champagne NV .

a ryokan with a view With its rocky coastline and crashing waves, the far-flung tip of Ishikawa Prefecture’s Noto Peninsula may not sound like the most hospitable corner of Japan. Yet the journey – in particular the final path, cutting through forest and trailing down steep cliffs – is worth the effort, as it takes visitors to the door of one of Japan’s most hidden delights: Lamp no Yado.

A solitary family ryokan inn dating back 400 years, Lamp no Yado is as romantic as it is remote.

An intimate network of old wooden buildings, it is home to 13 traditional tatami mat rooms, with futons (unrolled nightly), atmospheric lanterns and sliding paper screens. But the biggest scene-stealer? Its dramatic setting, clinging to the edges of the Japan Sea – particularly wonderful during the winter, when snow covers the landscape and waves crash onto the craggy boulders. Not that there’s any chance of feeling cold. The ryokan prides itself on the restorative effect of its steaming hot-spring onsen waters in a string of sea-facing baths – from a lantern-lit cave bath to the Nami no Yu private bath, with warm red walls above an illuminated swimming pool.

The best rooms are the two-storey houses with private outdoor rotenboro baths and an outlook guaranteed to provide spectacular winter views as flurries of snow fall over the sea.

Lamp no Yado (0081 768 86 8000; lampnoyado.co.jp; stone baths with a view in the fragrant Espa spa.

From snow in sapporo to sunshine in okinawa

WINTER in japan

doubles from £220, half board).

The Sapporo Snow Festival runs from February 5 to 18, 2016 (snowfes.com/english). Sushi Tanabe (0081 11 520 2202; sushi-tanabe.com) offers sushi meals from about

marvellous machiya

Japan is expert at extremes – from old and new

£63 per person. Ritz-Carlton Okinawa (0081 980

Never mind hotels. For an atmospheric taste of

architecture to traditional and modern lifestyles. And the

43 5555; ritzcarlton.com/okinawa; doubles from

local life, one of the best places to stay in Kyoto

weather is no exception, with winter months bringing both

about £235, b&b).

is a renovated wooden machiya merchant

sub-zero temperatures and tropical sunshine. It’s all about snow in Sapporo, a city in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island, which is home to one of the country’s biggest,

townhouse. While thousands of these distinctive

a helitour oF mount Fuji

narrow buildings once lined the city’s streets, many were knocked down in favour of modern

sparkliest winter extravaganzas: the Sapporo Snow

Forget walking boots and oxygen masks. There is only

developments, prompting a small but growing

Festival. More than two million visitors make a pilgrimage

one way to view the summit of Mount Fuji in style:

movement to restore and protect those that survive.

every February to see the streets and parks transformed

on board a custom-designed Hermès helicopter.

Oku Zaimoku-cho is among the most luxurious of the

into a dreamily illuminated wonderland filled with epic

The Mandarin Oriental Tokyo launched private tours

11 Kyoto machiya that have been painstakingly

snow sculptures. This year’s snow sculpture highlights

of Mount Fuji earlier this year on board a Eurocopter

restored to the highest level by Iori Machiya Stay.

ranged from a sprawling Taiwanese temple and a

Hermès Edition, enabling guests to take in bird’s-eye

A quiet alley leads to the two-storey house, whose

fantastical oversized toy box to sci-fi snow figures from

views of the snow-capped volcano. There are few

central pillar is fashioned from an 150-year-old tree.

this winter’s new Star Wars film, as made by Japan’s

more iconic symbols of Japan than the perfectly

The interior is serene and minimalist, with plaster

Self-Defence Force troops. Exquisite seafood competes

triangular Mount Fuji (referred to as Fujisan), whose

walls, clean-lined wooden furniture, tatami-mat floors,

for attention with the snow in Sapporo, so it’s best to

12,388ft peak, around 62 miles south of the capital, is

sliding washi-paper screens, bold calligraphic art, a

reserve ahead at the city’s top restaurants – among them,

the tallest in the country. Despite the seasonal drop in

cypress-wood bath and a terrace overlooking the

Sushi Tanabe, a discreet Michelin-starred spot where

temperature, blue skies and sunshine are common

Kamo river. The traditional decor masks hi-tech

exquisite sushi is served from a simple wooden counter.

during Tokyo winters (when climbing Mount Fuji on

touches such as underfloor heating, while gourmet

foot is strictly off limits), making it the perfect season

meals (Japanese breakfasts, traditional kaiseki

shining in Okinawa, a necklace-like trail of white sandy

to savour the views from the comfort of a helicopter.

banquets) can be delivered. Those able to leave

islands on the southernmost tip of Japan. For the ultimate

Reclining on calf-leather seats, high-fliers take in

the serene confines should make a beeline for

sun-drenched winter break, check into the serene and

views of Tokyo that slowly give way to Sagami Bay

Camellia, a traditional house near the Kiyomizu

spacious Ritz-Carlton Okinawa, a deluxe establishment

and the placid waters of Lake Ashinoko before the

Temple, where traditional tea ceremonies are

located on top of a green hill around 75 minutes by car

mountain that launched a thousand haikus looms into

performed by kimono-clad masters in peaceful

from the main Naha airport. Surrounded by a perfectly

sight. The return leg of the 80-minute journey takes

natural surroundings.

manicured golf course, with the deep-blue East China Sea

in another, more modern example of Japan’s cloud-

Oku Zaimoku-cho sleeps up to six (0081 75 352 0211;

sparkling along the horizon, the hotel is an exercise in

brushing sights: a close-up of Tokyo Skytree, the

kyoto-machiya.com/eng; doubles from £220).

contemporary Asian design, from its naturally minimal

world’s tallest free-standing broadcasting tower.

Camellia (0081 75 525 3238; tea-kyoto.com;

rooms and monochrome Chura-Nuhji restaurant to the

Mandarin Oriental Tokyo Helicopter Flycation package

tea ceremony from about £11).

At the same time, the sun will almost certainly be

34 ultratravel

Five-star wheels A blink-and-you-miss-it fast bullet train is not the only way to travel in Japan. The nation also excels at luxuriously slow rail travel, most notably in the Cassiopeia. This two-storey night train, which has 83 private en-suite sleeping berths, sets off from Tokyo’s Ueno station (usually three times a week), pulling into the northern city of Sapporo 16-and-a-half hours later.

The train travels at a top speed of 68mph (less than half the pace of a Shinkansen bullet train), creating a journey to be savoured – from the views through the large windows of the private berths to the elegant old-school restaurant-on-wheels, which serves a mixture of French and Japanese cuisine. You’ll have to be quick to experience the trip, however, as the service is stopping in March 2016, and it is wildly popular.

The most luxurious of the country’s trains is the opulent Seven Stars, a five-star hotel-onwheels – dubbed Japan’s answer to the Orient-Express – that cruises the mountains, volcanoes, ceramic towns, temples and hot springs of southern Kyushu. Designed

by Eiji Mitooka, the celebrated creator of the bullet-train, it has 14 private suites with rich upholstery, handcrafted lattice wall panels, hinoki-wood bathrooms and plush Imabari towels. Testimony to its success among luxuryloving travellers? Since launching in 2013, it’s been booked for months in advance, with reservations made via a lottery system.

Cassiopeia is operated by JR East (jreast.co.jp/cassiopeia), with private berths from about £195 per person, room only.

Seven Stars is run by JR Kyushu (cruisetrain-sevenstars. com), from about £1,538 per person, based on two sharing, full board, for a two-day overnight journey.

ultratravel 35

architect Tadao Ando, plus innovative installations by

from the bright lights – more precisely, by tucking

artists such as Hiroshi Sugimoto, in local shrines, rice

into a private banquet fit for royalty in an exclusive

fields and old houses. The place to stay here is

ryokan inn. Among the best is Asaba, an atmospheric

Benesse House, a concrete-and-glass “art gallery with

17th-century inn in the mountain village of Shuzenji

five-star comfort. Hoshinoya Fuji, however – which

rooms”, also by Ando, each room (serene havens of

on the Izu Peninsula, about two hours south of

opened in October – is intent on changing this, and prides

clean lines, light wood and sea views) containing

Tokyo by train. Guests swap shoes for straw

itself on being Japan’s first luxury “glamping” resort.

unique artwork. Elsewhere, the quiet snowy

slippers in the monochrome pebble entrance before

Located in Yamanashi prefecture at the base of Mount Fuji,

mountains of western Niigata are the unlikely setting

being led along lantern-lit corridors to one of 17

the hotel is scattered among dense pine forests along the

for the world’s biggest international outdoor art

private rooms – havens of tatami, sliding screens,

shores of Lake Kawaguchi. It is a perfect showcase of

festival, Echigo-Tsumari. A string of permanent

beautiful flower arrangements and views over a lake

contemporary Japanese design, with 40 minimalist cabins

installations pop up in tiered paddy fields, abandoned

fringed with bamboo forests and Japanese apricot

among the trees, each cabin full of contemporary

schools and ramshackle wooden houses. For an

and camellia trees. The pre-dinner ritual starts

Japanese design features and with private terrace

overnight art fix, check into the recently renovated

with a soak in a natural hot-spring onsen bath

campfires. The day here kicks off with sunrise yoga or

House of Light, an experimental take on a traditional

overlooking the lake (with occasional musical

early-morning canoeing, and ends with star-viewing

Japanese house designed by the American artist

performances on a floating Noh stage). Then, suitably

sessions beneath night skies or a warming nightcap at the

James Turrell, with some striking light installations

relaxed in kimono-style yukata, guests sit at low

Bonfire Bar. In between, activities range from horse riding

(soaking in the sci-fi-lit Japanese-style baths is a

tables in their rooms before the gastronomic

to forest hiking, while meditative walking and reading

highlight, particularly when it’s snowing outside). But

spectacular begins: a string of kimono-clad staff bring

(there is a Library Café) are encouraged to take in

best of all? Sleeping in the main tatami mat room and

a dozen dishes of beautifully presented seasonal

the surrounding countryside. Food forms a key part of

pressing the button that opens the ceiling to reveal

dishes. The menu, handwritten on a scroll in

the experience, with outdoor “glamping dinners” by

the starry skies through a signature Turrell skylight.

calligraphic Japanese kanji, is unlikely to be of

atmospheric campfires and Dutch Oven dishes tailored

For more information on Naoshima and Benesse House,

any help in identifying what you’re eating – best

to personal tastes by private chefs.

visit benesse-artsite.jp/en. Benesse House; from about

simply to go with the culinary flow and savour the

Hoshinoya Fuji (hoshinoyafuji.com; 0081 50 3786 0066;

£175, room only. For information on Echigo-Tsumari visit

pretty selections of exotic seasonal mountain

doubles from about £280).

echigo-tsumari.jp. House of Light (hikarinoyakata.com/

vegetables, seafood, sushi, tempura, soups and rice,

eng), about £110 for use of the house, plus £22 per person,

all adorned with winter leaves and flowers on

depending on group size.

delicately painted ceramics and lacquerware.

GlampinG By mount Fuji Camping is not often associated with chic design and

art stays Art appreciation in Japan is not confined to city galleries.

WINTER in japan

Asaba (0081 558 72 7000; relaischateaux.com/asaba;

Banquets and Baths

doubles from £658, half board).

From remote mountain forests to far-flung fishing islands, a growing number of acclaimed contemporary art projects

Tokyo is a famously foodie destination, with a dazzling

Tour operators such as Cox & Kings (020 7873 5000;

are scattered across rural Japan. Naoshima, a tiny island in

constellation of Michelin stars, understated sushi

coxandkings.co.uk) and Inside Japan Tours (0117 370

the Seto Inland Sea, is one place to head: it’s home to

counters and glitzy skyscraper restaurants. But some

9751; insidejapantours.com) can arrange most

a series of jaw-droppingly beautiful galleries by the cult

of the city’s best culinary experiences can be found far

of the activities mentioned above.

rAYMOND PATrICK; NISEKO PHOTOGrAPHY GrOuP; AP; COrBIS; GETTY

LIGHT SHOW Clockwise, from left: the Echigo-Tsumari festival; fresh traditional cuisine; zohri footwear and socks; and a dining room at Asaba

ultratravel 37

cool cats have long loved St Kitts scenery and great music festival. But new marina are attracting a smart

38 ultratravel

for its laid-back charm, gorgeous new villas, hotels and a dazzling new set, says Nigel Richardson

lush life Views from Belle Mont Farm, a countryside retreat offering chic private villas; Courtney Pine, a regular at the music festival (inset)

ultratravel 39

No, really.

International supermodels do not, in the usual run of things, make a beeline for me across crowded bars. So when a 6ft vision in blue does just that, I’m reduced to jabbering inanity. To her credit, she doesn’t miss a beat.

“Hi, I’m Damaris…” she says.

“Amazing heels,” I stammer. “… and I’ll be hosting the music festival on Saturday night.”

This is my first encounter with Damaris Lewis, Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, dancer, actress and bestie of Prince, but I will see plenty more of her over the next three days. As she has just intimated, not only is she one of the hosts of the St Kitts Music Festival, which I’ve flown 4,000 miles to attend, but she is also a committed ambassador for the tiny Caribbean country of St Kitts and Nevis where the festival happens, and loves enthusing about the place to foreign media.

On the 10-hour flight from Gatwick (there are two a week) I have already genned up on the basics. St Kitts and Nevis is a federation of two islands (though I confine myself to the former, the main island, on this trip) that would fit comfortably inside the Isle of Wight, with a population of around 50,000. Shaped on a map like pieces of fried chicken – respectively, a drumstick and a nugget – in the Leeward chain of the West Indies, it is a former British colony with a rich cultural history to go with its more obvious Caribbean charms of sun, sand and affable people.

This is the festival’s 19th year and while it may not have the recognition-factor of, say, Glastonbury – which always takes place simultaneously at the end of June – the cognoscenti know where they’d prefer to be. The English jazz saxophonist Courtney Pine, for instance, is unlikely to be found in a muddy field in Somerset for as long as St Kitts is on the calendar.

“I’d rather be here than getting rained on,” he tells me on the first morning of the festival when I run into him in the St Kitts Marriott Resort where we are both staying. Pine played St Kitts in 2012 and, though he is not on the bill this year, not even Glastonbury can keep him away. “St Kitts is a fantastic festival – a combination of Caribbean elements with a unique feel,” he enthuses.

The venue is the Warner Park Sporting Complex – named after the first British governor, Sir Thomas Warner – in the laid-back capital, Basseterre, and past headliners include Lionel Richie and Roberta Flack.

This year major American R&B stars Ciara, Trey Songz and Jason Derulo top the bill, but it’s the homegrown talent that gives St Kitts its unique vibe, while for me the big draw is the veteran British reggae band Aswad (a nostalgia trip – I last saw them 30 years ago).

For the St Kitts and Nevis government the attraction is a little more hard-headed, the festival being as much about the country’s economy as it is about music.

Tourism is the island’s principal source of revenue since the commercial processing of sugar cane, a staple

Role Model Damaris Lewis (top) , an ambassador for the islands of St Kitts and Nevis (right)

ultratravel 41

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cash crop for hundreds of years, ended a decade ago. In the mid-18th century there were scores of sugar-cane plantations, worked by slaves, and the remnants of this industry have been “repurposed” for more enlightened times. The slave owners’ grand old houses have been turned into hotels, restaurants and museums; and the narrow-gauge railway that transported sugar cane 18 miles around the north, Atlantic, coast of the island to the outskirts of Basseterre is now the St Kitts Scenic Railway.

On a far smaller scale, salt was also processed and exported, and in White House Bay, in the south, a ramshackle old warehouse with a rusting tin roof has been converted into a cool bar with a jetty for the tenders of superyachts to tie up alongside. Salt Plage, it’s called, and it claims to be the best place on the island to watch the sun sliding into the Caribbean. So, before heading off to Warner Park for the first night of the festival, I feel compelled to test this boast, with Salt Plage’s signature cocktail: a Salt Pond Jumbie (rum, pineapple, orange juice, coconut cream and nutmeg).

It’s the perfect mood-setter for the musical mayhem that follows. But more of that later.

That’s the thing about the St Kitts Music Festival; as it’s a nocturnal event, running roughly from 8pm to 3am, there’s plenty of time to “lime” (hang out) in daylight hours. I lime with purpose, I like to think, as I am keen to catch up on a tourist scene that is transforming St Kitts from a Caribbean backwater to a classy niche destination. Of course, it doesn’t attract anything like the visitor numbers of those big regional players, the Bahamas (1.5million a year) and Jamaica (2.5million). But the 100,000-plus foreign tourists – mostly from the US, with about 10 per cent from Europe – who fly in each year do not constitute the whole picture. Cruise-passenger numbers are steadily increasing, with one million visiting last winter. And in the far north and far south, St Kitts is undergoing an upscale revolution.

A clue to what’s happening lies in what looks like an empty crossword puzzle floating in the blue waters off the south-east peninsula – the skeleton of a new superyacht marina that will become the point of entry for the global super-rich. There’s little to see at present, but the marina will form part of an unashamedly top-end development called Christophe Harbour, comprising a harbourside village, 18-hole golf course, 134-room Park Hyatt resort set to open next autumn and private villas costing £650,000 and upwards (spending more than £260,000 on property automatically confers citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis, which is not to be sniffed at – one perk, according to the developers, is “potential preferential treatment within the UK”, including the waiving of visa requirements).

At the other end of the island, folded into the rainforested foothills of 3,800ft Mount Liamuiga, another swanky development is taking shape: an organic farm, a “village” complete with a chapel for weddings, a spa, real estate, an 18-hole golf course designed by Ian Woosnam, and an airstrip instead of a superyacht marina.

Kittitian Hill is slated for completion in 2020, with the 84 guesthouses of Belle Mont Farm already open for business. While most visitors to the Caribbean want to stay by the beach, this ambitious project is working hard to attract the up-in-the-hills sort of traveller who will appreciate its green credentials and terrific views.

Designed by Bill Bensley, best known for creating premier south-east Asian resorts such as the Four Seasons Langkawi in Malaysia and the Hotel de la Paix in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Belle Mont Farm’s one-bedroom, adults-only cottages are smart, style-savvy sanctuaries mixing traditional features such as verandas and wood-shingle roofs with 21st-century tricks – instead of a television you get a tablet and a drop-down projection screen. Interiors have a colonial elegance, with dark

woods, louvred doors, roll-top baths and vivid works by local artist Kate Spencer. In the morning, breakfast is served beside your plunge pool, a tray of delights that might feature freshly squeezed watermelon juice, coconut bread with cinnamon, hot frittata and yogurt with mint and Nevisian honey.

Kittitian Hill’s claims to be inspired by “a holistic philosophy of sustainable development” sit somewhat uneasily with a 200-acre golf course (even if, as the PR manager Johan Kelly tells me, the course is “100 per cent organic”), but there’s no doubt the diamond-handled Colt .45s are being unholstered on St Kitts when it comes to ultra-luxe investment. Is this town big enough for two Prada-clad gunslingers? The next five years will tell.

Musicians, meanwhile, have more modest tastes. At the press conference for the first night of the music festival – when exclusively local and Caribbean acts are on – I collar the front men from two bands from St Kitts and Nevis, Kenny “Eazi” Warner of the Odisi Band and Royston “Mr World” Wigley of the Small Axe Band, and get them to tell me where they like to lime on their home patch – from beaches such as Reggae Beach, Cockleshell Bay (“a good place for a massage”, according to Damaris) and South Frigate Bay, to relaxed seafood joints such as Sprat Net and Vibes Beach Bar for music. I even bend Courtney Pine’s ear, as St Kitts is practically a second home for the jazz supremo. All of them are keen to emphasise the simplicity and friendliness of the island.

“It cooked and cooked and reached boiling point around one o’clock,” says Courtney Pine of the show. “A brilliant vibe”

At the festival that evening Mr World and his Small Axe Band are the highlight of a celebration of soca, which is an infectious mix of calypso and soul. “I love Nevis, we love St Kitts,” he sings, as he chucks bottles of water to the overheating bodies squirming in the pit below. The next morning I run into Pine again and he’s still buzzing from the show. “It cooked and cooked and reached boiling point around one o’clock,” he says. “A brilliant vibe.”

B

lurry eyed, I continue my purposeful liming – this time with Damaris Lewis. Over a delicate Asian-fusion lunch at Nirvana, in Fairview Great House (rebuilt in the style of the old sugar plantations), she explains that while she was born in New York her family are Kittitian and this has always felt like home, though “even if I were a tourist, everywhere in St Kitts would still feel like home”.

From Fairview we follow the Caribbean shore north, past a series of sites that make sense of what the tourism minister, the Hon Lindsay Grant, said at the start of the festival: “We were the first country [in the Caribbean] colonised by the British, so we are rich in heritage.”

It struck me at the time as a dubious distinction, and I certainly feel a twinge of white-liberal guilt as we cross the rocky gulch of Bloody River – which ran red in 1626 when the indigenous Caribs were wiped out by a combined force of British and French troops – and start the climb up to Brimstone Hill Fortress. This hilltop military complex, now a Unesco World Heritage Site, was largely built in the 18th century by African slaves to the design of British engineers, and, as the commentary on the introductory film puts it, has become “a place where one can reflect on the inventiveness and follies of man”. Indeed it is – though it is also a place, as Damaris demonstrates, where you can simply fling up your arms in joy at the stupendous ocean views stretching towards the island of St Eustatius.

That night Aswad take to the stage at Warner Park and I am transported back to the London of the early 1980s and more carefree times – for me, the musical highlight of a dizzy four days of ligging and liming with the stars.

One of those stars, Courtney Pine, rates St Kitts “the Caribbean’s best-kept secret”.

Not for long, I’m afraid, Courtney.

LIGGING AND LIMING Aswad at the festival in the capital’s stadium (inset). An unspoilt beach on which to rest after a night of reggae and rum (above)

ultratravel 43

The ULTRA GUIDE to ST KiTTS & NeviS

Where to stay

by New York artists Brice and Helen

the island’s peak, Mount Liamuiga

Belle Mont Farm

Marden. Set beside a reflecting pool

(001 869 465 4121; gregsafaris.com).

A thousand feet up in the green

designed by Ed Tuttle, its restaurant

hills of northern St Kitts, with

serves Caribbean comfort food such

Where to drink

tremendous views and a commitment

as shrimp glazed with rum and lime,

Carambola Beach Club

to sustainable luxury, this lofty

and grilled mahi mahi with red-curry

At the western end of South Friars Bay

designer escape features elegant

coconut sauce (001 869 469 3346;

beach, Carambola brings a touch of

one-bedroom guesthouses with

goldenrocknevis.com).

Ibiza to St Kitts with its smart wooden

plunge pools and alfresco bathrooms.

loungers, large modern bar and sushi

Dining at The Kitchen (see below)

What to do

is a highlight, and there’s a new

Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park

walk east along the shore and you’ll

companion sea-to-fork restaurant

One of the most spectacular sights in

find two more easy-going watering-

on the beach at Dieppe Bay (001 869

the Leeward Islands, Brimstone Hill is

holes, the Jamaican-run Jam Rock

465 7388; bellemontfarm.com;

a colossal fortress dating from 1690

and castaway-style Shipwreck Beach

doubles from £445, with breakfast).

that was once home to more than

Bar & Grill (001 869 465 9090;

1,000 soldiers and their families.

carambolabeachclub.com).

menu. If you fancy a beach-bar crawl,

Ottley’s Plantation Inn

Abandoned in 1853 and now restored,

A 23-room plantation-style hotel with

it is also a green and airy national park

Salt Plage

bags of Caribbean charm, Ottley’s is

with superb views – take a picnic and

Part of the still-developing

approached via a splendid parade of

invest in the audioguide (001 869 465

Christophe Harbour real-estate

royal palm trees and comes with a

2609; brimstonehillfortress.org).

project, Salt Plage rests beside the

66ft spring-water swimming pool. The

clear waters of White House Bay

airy Royal Palm Restaurant serves

St Kitts Scenic Railway

with a wooden jetty, contemporary

contemporary Caribbean dishes and

Completed in 1926, this narrow-gauge

lounge seating and a maritime theme

there’s a sweet one-hut spa

railway transported sugar cane across

evoking the bygone days of the sugar

(001 869 465 7234; ottleys.com;

the north of St Kitts until 2005. Now

and salt trades. Drinks are orientated

doubles from £180, room only).

it has a second life taking visitors on

more to wine and champagne than

a breezy two-hour trundle around

cocktails, and snacks such as

Four Seasons Resort Nevis

the Atlantic coast with a guided

seafood ceviche and lobster wrap

Set beside the white sands of Pinney’s

commentary and drinks. Departures

Beach on Nevis’s sheltered west coast,

are from Needs Must station with

this green and spacious 196-room

times geared to visiting cruise ships

resort is a big hit with families and

(001 869 465 7263;

sporty travellers taking advantage of

stkittsscenicrailway.com).

its immaculately landscaped golf

are available (001 869 466 7221; CHILL-OUT FACTORS Christophe Harbour (top); Toño Rosario performs (centre) at the festival; a Kittitian postage stamp (inset); Salt Plage bar and jetty (below)

christopheharbour.com).

Chrishi Beach Club Nevis Set beside the quiet sands of Cades Bay on Nevis, this Norwegian-run

course and 10 tennis courts (001 869

Greg’s Safaris

469 1111; fourseasons.com/nevis;

Despite all the development, over a

doubles from £303, room only).

quarter of St Kitts is protected land –

walls and a corrugated-iron roof. The

and you won’t appreciate the full

mood is relaxed, with lounge music,

beauty of the island until you get deep

day-beds on the beach and a fine

Where to eat

beach bar and restaurant has a cool, international vibe with white wooden

The Kitchen

into its rainforest and peaks. Run by a

French chef Christophe Letard serves

fifth-generation Kittitian, Greg’s Safaris

view across to St Kitts (001 869 469 5959;

game-changing Caribbean-inspired

arranges hikes and 4x4 adventures

chrishibeachclub.com).

cuisine at this industrial-looking

inland or climbs up to the crater rim of

restaurant high in the hills above

Getting there

St Paul’s. Part of the Kittitian Hill

British Airways (0344 493

development, it makes the most of

0787; ba.com) flies from

being on a 400-acre organic farm and

London Gatwick to St Kitts,

the expertise of its Master of Wine

from £667 return in November.

Isabelle Legeron. Sunday brunch

Yu Lounge (001 869 465 5726;

attracts a happy crowd (001 869 465

yulounge.com/stkitts) provides

7388; bellemontfarm.com).

a fast-track immigration, luggage and customs service with airstrip transfers

Spice Mill Restaurant

by Porsche Cayenne, tapas and

Set beside the island’s best beach on

champagne. The outdoor loungers are

Cockleshell Bay, this tuned-in bar and

handy for a last sunbathe before flying

restaurant has chilled sounds,

home. From about £115 per person

interesting cocktails, freshly caught

per arrival or departure.

fish and pizzas from a wood-fired oven. On Sunday afternoons there’s

Information

usually live music or a DJ. The views

The next St Kitts Music Festival

across to Nevis are superb (001 869

will take place in June 2016

765 6706; spicemillrestaurant.com).

(stkittsmusicfestival.net). For more information on the islands, visit

The Rocks

stkittstourism.kn and nevisisland.com.

Golden Rock Inn is an old sugar estate

Download the free Telegraph Travel

lost in the hills of Gingerland, Nevis,

App for St Kitts at iTunes.

that has been turned into a hip hotel

Additional reporting by Nigel Tisdall

44 ultratravel

Asturias www.spain.info

t is x e o c s r a e b e r Landscape whe . . . n a m h it w e id side-by-s

asturiastourism.co.uk

Direct fight London-Asturias (STN-OVD) with Easyjet

46 ultratravel

city BELLE Inès de la Fressange at Le Dugommier brasserie (below); 19th-century portraits with 21st-century addtions in the Musée Carnavalet (right)

She’ll always have

PARIS

Inès de la Fressange – mother, model, muse and, in her capacity as the modern face of Marianne, the very embodiment of the French Republic – takes Ultratravel beyond the bourgeois boulevards into the capital’s most revolutionary streets and boutiques portrait Benoit PeVeReLLi

ultratravel 47

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“I realise how much I love this city

spring in her step Inès de la Fressange in Paris; a view from the Eiffel Tower; the designer’s shop

when I’m crossing a bridge over the Seine in my car and simply have to stop to get out and take a photograph. It’s not popular with the drivers behind me, who, being French, honk and shout. But Paris is so beautiful that it’s impossible not to pause.

I walk a lot, too, particularly at the weekend. In some parts of the city nothing has changed. I have two volumes of a Jacques Hillaret book that I often carry, Dictionnaire historique des rues de Paris, which explains who lived on which street, and what happened there, all beautifully illustrated with engravings. There’s history wherever you look. For instance, my favourite hotel, Hôtel de l’Abbaye (hotelabbayeparis.com), where each room is individually decorated with beautiful fabrics, is where Oscar Wilde lived for a while.

Paris is a city with multiple personalities. On the Left Bank it’s like a village, with small houses and narrow streets. On the Right Bank you’ll find large avenues and big bourgeois buildings – while going to the Marais is like travelling through time. The fact that Paris is made up of lots of different cities is what makes it special. That’s why it’s impossible to see it in a couple of days, unlike, say, Venice, where you can walk around St Mark’s Square, take a gondola on the canals, walk a couple of streets and feel like you’ve been there.

In Paris, each area has an attitude, its own feeling.

The Left Bank is cool, like Notting Hill used to be; the Champs-Elysées is more like Belgravia. On the Left Bank there are old people, children, families, social housing, people who have known each other for years. I moved here from around the Champs-Elysées because it had become difficult to live there. The butcher, the florist, the pharmacy – they had all vanished and been replaced by luxury brands.

You could buy a Versace blanket but not bread. Where I live now, there are lots of tiny streets, which as a visitor you would miss if you weren’t guided by a local. Rue Saint Simon, for example, with its little boutiques; and, nearby, my favourite florist, Thalie (thalie-fleurs.fr), run by ultratravel 49

Pascale Leray, whose taste I totally trust. If I’m having a dinner, she knows my home, my vases, my taste, and will deliver perfect flowers to me – peonies, big antique roses, flowers you might pick in the country. She isn’t a star florist, like Lachaume (lachaume-fleurs.com), which Karl Lagerfeld uses. Pascale’s is a small, personal, seasonal, characterful place.

There are a lot more shops like that now. Young, intelligent people have realised that, instead of modernising old shops, they just need to clean them up. They’ve understood that visitors come because they want to get a feeling of France, and that the cliché of what our country is doesn’t have to be pejorative, it can be positive. There’s a restaurant called Le Bon Saint Pourçain, on Rue Servandoni, which has been cleaned up and is now once again a wonderful little bistro. And there’s Buly (buly1803.com), an early 19th-century pharmacy that Balzac wrote about, which still has its antique wooden interiors and cabinets, and sells beautiful incense, oils, brushes and perfumed candles, wrapped in vintage-style packaging – lovely for presents.

Meanwhile the hipsters have started buying up shops in the 10th and 11th, around the Canal Saint-Martin and Rue de Marseilles, such as the Centre Commercial (centrecommercial.cc), and giving old places their own character, mixing up things from all over the world in a French way. They’ve realised that people want useful and comfortable things that have some history and depth to them, that aren’t merely fashionable. I go to a hairdresser, Delphine (delphinecourteille.com), whose main strength is that she doesn’t leave you looking like a fashion victim. I buy boots from La Botte Gardiane (labottegardiane.com) because they are soft, comfortable and unobtrusive, and sometimes you have days when you don’t want people to look at your shoes – you want a pair that are chic but not too special or trendy. And I get my bags from a wonderful woman who hand-makes them from incredible leather. Her boutique, La Contrie (lacontrie.com), is in a very narrow street opposite Colette, and she makes the bags and linings bespoke: I have one with Liberty lining and Barenia leather, which is the lovely glossy leather Hermès uses. It’s where I bought luggage, with blue-and-white-striped lining, for my daughter’s birthday, which she will hopefully have for ever.

I’ve been asked so many times what French style is.

I find it hard to say, but I think the essence is that we’re classic and we don’t worry about labels

I combing the streets From top: a leather bag

by La contrie; a table at Le grand Vefour; Le bon saint Pourçain; jewellery

by White bird; centre commercial; hôtel de l’Abbaye; combs for sale at buly 1803 pharmacy

50 ultratravel

don’t buy things because they’re fashionable.

Like many women I know, I want classic, simple things. I’ve been asked many times what French style is. I find it hard to say, but I think the essence is that we’re classic and don’t worry about labels.

We wear our coats for years, whereas Americans might have a new coat each season. We mix men’s, women’s and children’s clothes, designer trousers with a cheap T-shirt, old jeans with a silk shirt. All I want to wear usually is Anderson & Sheppard, which of course is English. They make the best Shetland sweaters and cashmere. I’m never happier than in one of their round-neck navy cashmere sweaters, walking the streets of Paris, or beside the Seine, on a beautiful day.

My perfect day, I suppose, would start with a coffee at Café de Flore, on Boulevard SaintGermain, which still has a wonderful Parisian

Sand on your feet.

Time

on your hands.

Table for two. A candle-lit dinner, on the rocks, by the sea. Waiters that advance and retreat like the tide.

And after, a slow walk to the villa. The other world can wait.

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Paris is a city where the nicest things are small, intimate, French.

The best spots are not flashy and obvious used to meet in the 18th century. Or I might go to Hôtel Costes (hotelcostes.com), as you can eat outside. Occasionally I go somewhere smart like Le Bristol, although that’s a business-lunch spot, which I often avoid. I’m not totally French – those lunches take hours and wine in the afternoon makes me sleepy. On a perfect day, though, I could escape for a nap at Hôtel de l’Abbeye.

There are certain things that Parisians don’t do.

We don’t do cocktails – that’s very American – and we certainly don’t do happy hour like the British.

We don’t do spas much – why bother when you can take care of your skin at home with wonderful creams that you can get inexpensively in pharmacies like City Pharma on Rue Bonaparte (pharmacie-paris-citypharma.fr)? And I don’t really go to fashionable places. If I want to go to a restaurant, I don’t want to book weeks in advance, like you do for Septime (septimecharonne.fr). And I stay away from touristy areas, like Montmartre, where there are beautiful restaurants but the food is often expensive or bad.

Paris is a place where the best things are small, intimate, French. I wrote my latest book, Parisian Chic City Guide, because people kept asking me where to go. You need recommendations to find the best spots, as they are not flashy and obvious.

And it’s a city for which you need time – to wander around, to look up, to get lost. Around every corner there will always be something else to look at.”

Interview by Lisa Grainger Parisian Chic City Guide: Shopping, Dining and More is published by Flammarion, £12.

52 ultratravel

Inès de la Fressange’s

FAVOURITE PARISIAN ShoPS as notebooks. You can never have enough notebooks, in my opinion: I contracted a notebook fixation and hoard them as if a catastrophic stationery shortage were imminent. For those into art therapy, there are plenty of colouring books too.

MARIE-HELENE DE TAILLAC 8 Rue de Tournon, VIe (0033 1 4427 0707; mariehelenedetaillac.com) I’m almost embarrassed to cite this boutique (pictured above) yet again, because it already has such a cult following, but where else on Earth can you be as certain to find a magnificent piece of jewellery?

A ring by Marie-Hélène de Taillac is one you will treasure forever and never regret buying.

SIMONE 1 Rue de Saint-Simon, VIIe (0033 1 4222 8140; simoneruesaintsimon.com) A hidden treasure, totally off the beaten track. The owner is a savvy buyer who seeks out labels you won’t find anywhere else; she also has a talent for selecting flattering looks, from big names and designer labels to obscure little brands. It’s hard to find a boutique these days where the garments are collated by a single person and are refined but not outrageously expensive.

At Simone there is always a little dress or an irresistible scarf or cardigan ideal for everyday wear, and it’s always full of the most interesting colours. So even if I buy something that doesn’t suit me, it certainly brightens up my wardrobe.

CURIOSITES GALLERY 26–28 Rue des Grands-Augustins, VIe (0033 1 4633 0963) I like to visit this antique-jewellery shop with my friend, the actress Sandrine Kiberlain. We’re usually greeted by excited shouts as soon as we cross the threshold by the owner, who is charming. The prices are very fair, and there’s a magnificent selection, including old jewellery, carnelian initials and bracelets in lava stone. I particularly love the intaglios, which are gemstones with designs engraved on their surfaces. It’s like owning a museum piece.

DUBOIS 20 Rue Soufflot, Ve (0033 1 4441 6750; dubois-paris.com) I could stop in here every day. This old, pretty shop, founded in 1861, specialises in fine art supplies, and you’re assured that they’re going to be of high quality. It’s filled with paintbrushes, notebooks, paints and Kaweco pens that look vintage, and that I always want, as well

KHADI & CO 82 Blvd Beaumarchais, XIe (0033 1 4357 1025; khadiandco.com) This shop stocks beautiful clothes, shawls and tablecloths made from Indian fabrics. It’s a wonderful place to go to understand the significance of ethno-chic in Paris; its fabrics are so subtle and delicate that they are the sort of thing that you keep for life.

The khadi is symbolic in India, politically, and the pieces they have show off the remarkable expertise involved in handweaving this light, finely woven cloth. The problem is that everything here is irresistible, from extravagant coats to simple tablecloths. My advice, if you can’t decide what to buy, is to choose a scarf, because you can be sure that you’ll treasure it for ever.

CENTRE COMMERCIAL 2 Rue de Marseille, Xe (0033 1 4202 2608; centrecommercial.cc) I’m tempted to come here whenever I have a free moment.

This brand began marketing to adults, and now children have their own address as well (22 Rue Yves Toudic, Xe). Men will find an array of hipster options, as well as great

pea coats, the right jeans and smart trainers; there are supercool styles for women (rompers, anyone?), as well as classic looks (chapeaux by famed hatter Larose) and lovely beauty products. I wish they’d open on the Left Bank.

daughter, an interior architect, so it’s a family affair. It has become the shop to go to for decoration for your home, including gorgeous pottery from Tinja in Tunisia, vases, sheets, lamps, pillows, tableware, children’s furnishings and even some carefully selected clothing, coloured with vegetable dyes.

LE COFFEE CLUB 87 Rue d’Assas, VIe (0033 1 4329 8787; coffee-club.fr) Finally a restaurant that’s open on Sundays where your teenagers will be thrilled to go too. In the brick interior with pretty knick-knacks, you can enjoy quesadillas and eggs benedict, or a nice vanilla milkshake. This place is so new, it didn’t even make it into my guide.

ASTIER DE VILLATTE 173 Rue Saint-Honoré, Ier (0033 1 4260 7413; astierdevillatte.com) The classic and modern ceramics at Astier (pictured above) are so beautiful that when they’re on your table guests don’t notice whether you’re a good cook or not. As well as stocking refined and original porcelain, the shop is full of very beautiful craftsmanship that is très French and totally chic. It has a vast selection of tableware in designs to suit every taste, including pristine white services for dedicated minimalists, and if you’re not inspired by plates and dishes, you could still pick up a candle or a pretty bottle of eau de cologne. For collectors, there’s also an incense burner shaped like a cat, designed exlusively by the Japanese artist Setsuko Klossowska de Rola.

MONA MARKET 4 Rue Commines, IIIe (0033 1 4278 8004; monamarket.com) I first came across this boutique (pictured below) in Montpellier.

It was founded by an interior designer who handed over the reins of the Paris shop to her

FIFI CHACHNIL 231 Rue Saint-Honoré, Ier (0033 1 4261 2183; fifichachnil.com) This shop (below) produces the most beautiful lingerie in the world.

Fifi has mastered the art of designing lingerie that is sexy

without ever looking trashy, and has her own distinctive style that’s truly timeless. If you whisper this address to your boyfriend, he can’t go wrong here. Her best design is a black lace model she calls “Bel Ami” (you’ll find it in the Grands Classiques collection); it’s also super-comfortable.

Dominique maître, Flammarion anD raphaël hache/parisian chic city GuiDe; John talbott; Getty

character. Then I’d stroll on the Left Bank, on little streets, and perhaps through the Jardin du Luxembourg. Or I might walk to the Marais, to the Musée Carnavalet (carnavalet.paris.fr), which is in a beautiful house that once belonged to Madame Sévigné and brings to life the history of Paris.

I might get lost in the Place des Vosges, which is incredibly beautiful. Then I might spend some money at White Bird (whitebirdjewellery.com), which has incredible jewellery, and at my own shop (inesdelafressange.fr), for things from all over the world, from a “ketchup gun” and lovely handmade pottery to bags made in Africa. Then, maybe, the Da Rosa (darosa.fr) tapas bar, for a bit of incredible Spanish ham. And of course Frédéric Malle (fredericmalle.com) for perfumes and candles. Or I’d walk in the park of the Palais Royal, which is beautiful and open to the public – not like in London, where many of the city’s smaller gardens are locked.

Another thing I like is the markets. We buy all our food from markets. For furniture, Cligancourt is still good – it’s enormous, though, so you need to know where to go. There are also wonderful vintage clothes in Marché Serpette marcheserpette.com) – lace, embroidered pieces, antique bags. If you sign up for my weekly newsletter (lalettredines.com), when I find new things in the market, I’ll let you know.

I’d call in somewhere very French for a late lunch, perhaps Le Grand Vefour (grand-vefour. com), which is so Parisian – grand and elegant, with paintings on the wall, where revolutionaries

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Wild at heart A private helicopter meets guests disembarking from a jetboat ride along the Matukituki River. Interior of Matakauri Lodge (far right)

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ur helicopter crested the ridge and plunged towards the coast. The scenery of New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park unfolded on all sides in a rush of glaciers, forest and snow-capped peaks. Far below, surf crashed on a black-sand beach. Waterfalls tumbled over towering cliffs and in the distance rivers shimmered silver in the sun.

It was scenery beyond compare. Line upon line of mountains disappeared into a hazy horizon, the only limit on a wilderness of apparently boundless grandeur. We had landed amid the fissured ice, skimmed lakes of ominous blue, and wheeled above the glittering, fractured coast. These were some of the world’s finest landscapes, and we were seeing them in the best way possible.

But not for us the perfunctory 20-minute sightseeing flight: we had been in the helicopter for several hours, and revelled in every minute. Now, though, the sun had begun to sink and the shadows were lengthening. Rick, our pilot, gave us the word. It was time for home.

In a perfect world, home for many visitors after such a day would have been one of New Zealand’s 31 luxury lodges. Until recently, most of these would have had more than a hint of the traditional Victorian hunting lodge, the basic model for many Kiwi lodges since the first, Huka Lodge, opened its doors to guests in 1924.

Not any more. Our day in Fiordland had been no ordinary day, and what lay before us as Rick landed at Minaret Station was no ordinary lodge.

Our New Zealand trip had started conventionally enough, with a day in Auckland to decompress after the long flight from London. We took a ferry to Waiheke

Island, a kind of New Zealand in miniature, graced with pristine countryside, easy-going people, fine restaurants and a succession of compelling small wineries.

Next morning we headed south, to Wellington, and a brisk helicopter transfer to nearby Wharekauhau, the lodge that Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge chose for a rest day before starting their 2014 New Zealand tour. As we came in to land we could see why – the rural setting is private and peaceful. Wharekauhau was also our first look at the new generation of New Zealand’s lodges.

Wharekauhau has been a working sheep station since the 1840s – one of its great charms – but these days only 15 per cent of its income comes from sheep. In 1982 New Zealand had 70 million sheep; now there are fewer than 30 million. Drought, artificial fibres, competition from China and the removal of subsidies have reduced the demand for wool. Many stations have gone to the wall, others are muddling through, and some, like Wharekauhau, have diversified.

Many, though, have needed a helping hand, which has arrived in the shape of North American benefactors who have fallen in love with New Zealand. The US investment billionaire Bill Foley bought Wharekauhau in 2011. A neighbouring farm belongs to the film director James Cameron, who won Oscars for Titanic and Avatar. Julian Robertson, a North Carolina hedge-fund billionaire, has three lodges, including one of the newest, Matakauri, near Queenstown, whose £7,200 a night four-bedroom Owner’s Cottage also hosted William and Kate last year.

Wharekauhau and its 5,500 acres are perfect for doing more or less nothing – strolls on the beach, hikes in the

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blade runner An exhilarating helicopter ride over the Fiordland glaciers (right).

Modernist simplicity at Annandale’s Seascape Cottage (below)

hills – but we stirred ourselves to visit nearby Martinborough, one of New Zealand’s most prestigious wine regions. And I’m glad we did, for while the area is tiny – it produces just two per cent of New Zealand’s wine (and New Zealand produces just one per cent of the world’s wine overall) – the intimate and informal tastings at some of its 30 boutique wineries were among the highlights of our trip.

As we sipped flinty pinot gris at the tiny roadside Schubert Wines, locals dropped by on mountain bikes to chat and pick up a couple of bottles for supper. Elsewhere, tastings took place in glorified sheds, garages crammed with steel tanks, or, more usually, out among the vines chatting with producers. Ramshackle?

Slightly, but charmingly so, and certainly not to the detriment of the wines, which are exceptional, with Schubert’s pinot noir, Escarpment’s 2012 pinot gris, and the innovative creations of Lance Redgwell at Cambridge Road deserving a special mention.

I

It was a landscape of boundless grandeur. We skimmed lakes of ominous blue and wheeled above the glittering, fractured coast

f fine wine was among the highlights of Wharekauhau, then sublime food was the abiding memory from our next destination, Lodge at The Hills, a dazzling exclusive-use property 45 minutes’ drive from Queenstown, New Zealand’s “adventure capital”. Lodge at The Hills opened to guests last year but began life as the private home of Sir Michael Hill, a Kiwi entrepreneur who bought what was then another struggling sheep farm and transformed it into The Hills, New Zealand’s most exclusive golf course (club membership is limited to 200 people).

If you’re a golfer, then you’ll relish the Lodge’s private par-three practice hole and its direct access to the course, which is regularly voted one of the world’s best outside Britain and the United States. If not, then there’s the swimming pool, tennis court, a glorious garden, magnificent views, striking contemporary interiors, faultless service, flexible concierge arrangements – and, of course, that food.

We had already come to expect fine food in New Zealand, from an extraordinary first-night meal at The French Café in Auckland to the gourmet burgers that had us queuing round the block at Fergburger in Queenstown.

But John Pickens, the Lodge’s head chef, is at the forefront of New Zealand’s culinary trend, one that has seen the fusion cooking pioneered long ago by Kiwi chefs such as Peter Gordon combine with the “molecular gastronomy” of Heston Blumenthal and others.

Thus a caprese salad at the Lodge became an odyssey of taste, temperature and texture. No simple basil here, but rather basil oil, basil sorbet and tiny baby-basil leaves; and no straightforward slices of tomato, but rather subtle smoked compotes and intensely flavoured jellies. A rack of Central Otago lamb with juniper, sour cherry jus and caramelised cauliflower was followed by a “deconstructed” cheesecake of lemon curd, lemon sorrel, freeze-dried raspberries and white-chocolate powder.

As in Wharekauhau, you could happily spend days at the Lodge without straying far from home, but we took another helicopter – you’re never far from a helicopter in New Zealand – deep into Mount Aspiring National Park, where,

after a magical, silent walk through forests of fern and native bush, we boarded a jetboat for an exhilarating hour of white water and glorious views on the glacier-fed Matukituki River to Wanaka.

Here we met Rick and the helicopter that would take us into the Fiordland wilderness and thence to Minaret Station, which is not only one of New Zealand’s standout new-wave lodges but also one of the world’s great wilderness retreats. Like many memorable destinations, the luxury of Minaret Station does not lie in its fixtures and fittings – though it is comfortable enough – but in the unique experience it offers. It is unimaginably remote for a start, hidden high in a beautiful glaciated valley at the heart of the Southern Alps. A helicopter is the only way in, appropriately enough, given that the property belongs to Sir Tim Wallis, the larger-than-life pioneer of New Zealand’s helicopter industry.

Before Sir Tim bought it in 1995, Minaret Station was part of another failing sheep farm (it had seen off nine different owners in the 40 years from 1860 to 1900 alone).

Sir Tim tamed it, thanks in large part to his helicopters, which can muster its 25,000 sheep (up from 1,200 in 1994) and thousands of deer as nimbly as any dog.

As elsewhere, though, the farm still needs a helping hand, which is partly why Sir Tim and his four sons

opened its remarkable mountain outpost – a cosy lodge building and just four self-contained suites – in 2011.

If you’re lucky enough to reach this hideaway, you can walk (guides are available), read or simply relish the utter seclusion. Or you can board helicopters to go heli-hiking, sightseeing, fishing or hunting. In winter you can choose from glacier and heli-skiing activities that are so good you’ll need to book months in advance to secure them.

But much as we loved Minaret Station, it’s easy to see how it might be too remote for some, which is where our last stop, Annandale, came in. From Queenstown we flew to Christchurch, a city now coming back to life after the terrible earthquakes of 2010 and 2011, as we discovered in a fascinating tour of the downtown area – part derelict, part reborn – before another helicopter hop to the nearby Banks Peninsula.

The Peninsula is a little piece of pastoral perfection, its meadows and rolling hills ideal sheep and cattle country.

And Annandale, on its easily accessed northern shore, is yet another working farm (founded in 1843) that has diversified with the help of a new owner (the US-based Kiwi businessman Mark Palmer) and sought a more contemporary approach to the classic New Zealand lodge.

We stayed at Scrubby Bay, one of Annandale’s luxury villas, a modern marvel of cedarwood, glass and stone that looks out to sea, a picture of peace where the only sounds are the waves, the wind and the skylarks’ song.

It is one of four exclusive-use properties (see Places to Stay, overleaf) that dot the farm’s 4,000 acres, all of which are very different, but all of which, in the words of Lyndsay Jobin, Annandale’s manager, are designed as places to stay “where the world can’t find you”. They are certainly that – though New Zealand is already a place where the world can’t find you, which is one of its charms.

But the beauty of places such as Annandale is that, even as you relish the seclusion and scenery, you can rely on the fine food, the wine and the other creature comforts at which New Zealand also excels. It doesn’t hurt to have a helicopter at your beck and call to help pull it all together – and that too can be easily arranged. ultratravel 61

The ULTRA GUIDE TO NEW ZEALAND

5 PLACES TO STAY ANNANDALE Couples visiting this working sheep station near Christchurch should book the Shepherd’s Cottage, a romantic one-bedroom hideaway in the hills, or Seascape, a one-bedroom modern tour-de-force of sublime views and cutting-edge technology. Scrubby Bay sleeps up to eight and The Homestead, the original farmhouse, sleeps up to 10 (from £2,160).

Houses on Annandale (0064 3 304 6841; annandale.com) cost from NZ$770/£330 to £2,160 a night, room only) LODGE AT THE HILLS Dazzling contemporary interiors distinguish this lodge from New Zealand’s other exclusive-use properties. The tailored concierge service offers flexibility when it comes to dining or organising your activities.

Golf on the adjoining course is an obvious lure, but the proximity of Queenstown means there’s no shortage of other outdoor options.

Lodge at The Hills (0064 3 442 0502; thehillslodge.co.nz; exclusive use for up to 12 guests from £13,000 nightly; three-night minimum stay) MATAKAURI LODGE Matakauri bears the light, bright hallmarks of New Zealand’s go-to lodge designer, Virginia Fisher. Her white and clean-lined interiors are perfect complements to the airy views over Lake Wakatipu, a feature of the peaceful setting just minutes from the bustle of Queenstown.

Matakauri Lodge (0064 3 441 1008; matakaurilodge.com; double half-board lodge room from £410, two-bedroom Owner’s Cottage from £5,220) MINARET STATION New Zealand’s most remote and intimate lodge – accessible only by helicopter – has just four suites and sits at the heart of breathtaking mountain terrain high above Lake Wanaka. Hike, hunt, fish or heli-ski by day and by night eat superlative food, read by the fire or sit in a hot tub under the stars.

Minaret Station (0064 3 443 5860; minaretstation.com; double full-board chalet from £865, helicopter transfers from £780 per person) WHAREKAUHAU This working farm and lodge close to Wellington provided the first stop for

62 ultratravel

Prince William and the Duchess of

voted among the world’s 10 best

Cambridge during their royal tour last

restaurants. Book the chef’s table in

year. The main lodge enjoys views

the adjoining French Kitchen for one of

across the fields to the sea, and the 13

Australasia’s most memorable private

spacious cottages have contemporary

dining experiences.

interiors. There is plenty to do in the

210 Symonds Street, Auckland

area, from hiking to wine-tasting.

(0064 9 377 1911; thefrenchcafe.co.nz)

Wharekauhau (0064 6 307 7581;

RATA Josh Emett’s culinary journey as a chef included stints at Gordon Ramsay at The London West Hollywood and The London NYC, which won one and two Michelin stars respectively. On his return home to New Zealand he opened Rata, the restaurant of choice in Queenstown.

Te Nuku, 43 Ballarat Street, Queenstown (0064 3 442 9393; ratadining.co.nz)

wharekauhau.co.nz; double half board from £430)

4 GREAT EXPERIENCES THE ULTIMATE HELI TOUR None of New Zealand’s many helicopter tours can match this fourhour flight over South Island’s Fiordland National Park, the country’s finest wilderness. Glacier, beach and alpine lakeshore landings are included, as well as flights over the region’s best landscapes, including Milford Sound.

Alpine Helicopters (0064 3 443 4000; alpineheli.co.nz; tours from £3,900 for up to five people) JETBOAT WILDERNESS RIDE High-adrenaline rides at speeds of up to 50mph up and down the Matukituki River near Wanaka, on South Island, are combined with gentler moments to watch wildlife, walk through the bush, and admire the glaciers and other majestic scenery of Mount Aspiring National Park.

Wanaka River Journeys (0064 3 443 4416; wanakariverjourneys.co.nz; from £100 per person) WINE TASTING Choose bespoke trips to boutique wineries such as Obsidian on Waiheke Island, near Auckland, or Escarpment and Cambridge Road in the prestigious Martinborough wine region. waihekewine.co.nz, winesfrommartinborough.com PRIVATE YACHT CHARTER Charter a 75ft, eight-berth yacht to fish, swim, dive, waterski, watch dolphins or hike in otherwise hard-toreach corners of the Bay of Islands, north of Auckland, the prettiest of New Zealand’s many beautiful seascapes.

Bucket List Charters (0064 21 966531; bucketlistcharters.co.nz; from £2,250 daily for up to 15 people)

3 PLACES TO EAT THE FRENCH CAFÉ Simon Wright’s cooking has more than once seen this Auckland institution

eAt, plAy, love Visual and culinary stimulation at The French Café in Auckland (top); the Escarpment Vineyards in Martinborough (above); Jack’s Point golf course, near Queenstown

WHITEBAIT Paul Hoather is the force behind more than 20 years of fine dining in Wellington at The White House and, latterly, Charley Noble. His newest venture, Whitebait, showcases his sophisticated take on seafood in a contemporary setting of glass, wood and stainless steel.

1 Clyde Wharf, Oriental Bay, Wellington (0064 4 385 8555; white-bait.nz)

JACK’S POINT This John Darby-designed course is carved from the high country of a former sheep station near Queenstown, and has a challenging array of bluffs, natural bush and undulating tussock grasslands, plus fine views of Lake Wakatipu and The Remarkables mountain range.

Jack’s Point, Kawarau Falls, Queenstown (0064 3 450 2050; jackspoint.com)

BEST OF THE REST LODGES Blanket Bay (blanketbay.com); Kauri Cliffs (kauricliffs.com); Treetops (treetops.co.nz); The Farm at Cape Kidnappers (capekidnappers.com); Kinloch Lodge (kinlochlodge.co.nz); Huka Lodge (hukalodge.co.nz); and Otahuna (otahuna.co.nz).

These and 23 other lodges are members of the Lodges of New Zealand (lodgesofnz.co.nz)

2 GREAT GOLF COURSES

HOTELS Auckland Hotel DeBrett (hoteldebrett. com); Hilton Auckland (hilton.com) Wellington Museum Art Hotel (museumhotel.co.nz) Queenstown The Spire Hotel (thespirehotel.com); The Dairy (thedairy.co.nz)

THE HILLS Guests at Lodge at The Hills have direct access to this exclusive course; others need to book well ahead. The modern sculptures dotted around the course are almost as striking as the fine lake and mountain setting.

Arrowtown, near Queenstown (0064 3 409 8290; thehills.co.nz)

RESTAURANTS Auckland The Sugar Club (peter-gordon.net); Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar (eatatdepot.co.nz) Wellington Ortega Fish Shack & Bar (ortega.co.nz) Queenstown The Bunker (thebunker. co.nz); Madam Woo (madamwoo. co.nz); Fergburger (fergburger.com)

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ultratravel 65

First class is getting more luxurious than ever, with showers, bars and even apartments at 40,000ft. Can British Airways keep up? John Arlidge takes his seat in its newest first-class cabin, and compares it with five of the finest other airlines

FIRST LOOK



Two-tone leather interior: similar to that used in Aston Martin and Jaguar cars



Thick upholstered seat: in quilted fabric, not leather



Art-deco style desk lamp: hopeless for reading but looks great

SKY-HIGH PERKS On-board highlights, from left: a Singapore Airlines Suite; mustard-and-dill salmon on board Qatar Airways; The Residence on Etihad; cheery uniforms aboard Qantas; a shower room on Emirates

66 ultratravel



Divider: down to chat and up to sleep

flying highs British Airways’ new First Class cabin on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner

A



Lacquered side table: bigger and shinier than an oligarch’s desk



Large new cupboard with split-level interior

s the new Gulf carriers introduce showers and bedroom suites at the pointy end of their jets, it’s easy to forget that it was good old British Airways that invented luxury international flying. On August 25, 1919, a de Havilland DH4A biplane took off from Hounslow Heath, with a single passenger and a cargo that included Devonshire cream and grouse. It was the world’s first first-class international service, travelling between London and Paris.

The grouse have gone and there are, alas, a few more passengers on my box-fresh BA Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, but the West Country cream is still served with scones for tea as the pindrop-quiet jet arcs over America’s great plains en route from Heathrow to Austin, Texas. BA has a new First Class and it wants to lure more ritzy travellers to its newest destinations, including the city they call “the blue dot in the red state”.

Regular upscale flyers will not immediately spot the difference.

It’s a subtle evolution. The main difference is size. The new First cabin on the 787-9 is small. There are only eight seats, compared with the usual 12 or 14. That’s a match for BA’s OneWorld partner, Qatar Airways, which has the only eight-seat first-class cabin on the Airbus A380 superjumbo.

The seats follow the lead set by Singapore Airlines and the Gulf carriers by being more private “suites” than glorified chairs, with high walls around them. (If you want to chat with fellow passengers, you should choose the middle seats in the 1-2-1 configuration.) The larger suite means that there is a lot more storage and surface space – perhaps the most of any first-class cabin – including two bins for shoes and magazines, a split compartment cupboard for iPads and the like, and an inwardopening wardrobe for a jacket and shirt.

The cabin design details are also much better. The dining table now slides from beneath the side table, rather than popping out from the top of it and then dropping, so you no longer have to move your belongings from one place to another when you eat.

There’s a natty art deco-style desk lamp (no good for reading but it looks great). And as it’s a Dreamliner, window-seat passengers can adjust the tint of the panes to suit their mood.

The food and wine have improved, too, although BA still calls its menu “Height Cuisine”, which is a pun not even worthy of the worst Carry On film. I wish the menu were more proudly British, though – how about English sparkling wine, say, or chicken tikka?

Everything is served in a vastly more intelligent and attentive way than even five years ago. BA has found the sweet spot between formality and irreverence; if flying on Virgin is like going to the movies, BA is like going to the theatre.

Oddly, though, there’s no Wi-Fi: strange, when you think that the 787 is the most technically advanced passenger plane ever built. It’s odder still when you realise that it’s available on BA’s key competitors and even on the US domestic carriers. Some people, I know, hate the idea of being in contact with the world below, but if you are charging thousands of pounds for a ticket, I don’t think it’s too much to have the option of sending the odd email.

The big disappointment is the bathroom: singular. There is just one bog-standard model. The bathrooms on every other major carrier are at least twice the size and three times as nice – and there are two of them. Where are we supposed to use our limited-edition Burberry wallets, which are filled with Refinery toiletries? ultratravel 67

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SIX OF THE BEST FIRST-CLASS CABINS

British AirwAys

Dubai International, which during its peak hours

QAntAs

between 10pm and 3am can feel like a bit of BA’s £5-billion investment continues to bear fruit.

a zoo. Luggage allowance: 110lb.

Like the Richard Rogers-designed Terminal 5, the

After a jumpy few years, during which it lost money, then divorced BA and ran off with Emirates,

airline’s First Class cabin is the best of British design.

QAtAr AirwAys

the Kangaroo is flying high again. Its A380s have

Seat Made of fabric, not leather, which some will

Qatar raises the bar, literally. The champagne bar

interiors, the work of Sydneysider Marc Newson.

think cheap. But there is enough storage for a

on board its A380 is decorated with freshly-cut

Its service is the most authentic of any airline.

starter home, including a hanging wardrobe,

flowers and its chandeliers are finished in real gold.

Seat Swivels to face forward or towards your

a split-level cupboard and two “bins”, plus a new

There are only eight seats in first (the smallest

dining companion sitting on the ottoman. You

vanity mirror and large table.

number of any airline on the 380) and the removal

sleep on two supersoft sheepskin mattresses.

Technology BA does not have as many films as

of overhead bins means the ceilings feel high.

Technology Qantas is the first airline to offer

other carriers, but more than enough for most

Seat The biggest, plushest, softest in the sky, with

Samsung Gear Virtual Reality headsets, so

travellers. Watch the entertainment as and when

a massage function. Comes with Missoni pyjamas

travellers can access the virtual worlds of films

on the new 23in fixed screen. No Wi-Fi.

and slippers. The table extends to allow two

or swim with turtles on the Barrier Reef while

Food Lunch of salmon, crab boudin and poached

people to dine comfortably.

flying over it. No Wi-Fi.

lobster with lemon, Thai shallots and salsify

Technology The Android-based system features

Food For dinner, Neil Perry, of the feted

purée, followed by seared North Atlantic cod fillet

a touchscreen handset, giving you a “second

Rockpool restaurant in Sydney, offers miso-

and flaked salt-cod with pistachio and cauliflower

screen experience”. You can watch a film on the

glazed Patagonian toothfish with broccolini,

couscous. The champagne is Laurent-Perrier

26in, high-definition screen, follow the flight

roast pumpkin and sesame dressing, with Tyrrell’s

Grand Siècle. Unlike on the regular, smaller 787,

progress on your handset, and watch the pilot’s

Vat 1 Hunter Semillon 2007. For breakfast it’s

there’s a cappuccino maker.

view from the external landscape cameras. Wi-Fi.

Shaw River buffalo-milk yoghurt with banana

Service Perhaps it’s the “To Fly, To Serve” crest

Food Plenty of caviar, of course, but it’s the wine

and passionfruit, followed by sweetcorn fritters

embossed on the wall or maybe it’s the influence

that stands out: Krug Grand Cuvée, Joseph

with bacon, avocado, crème fraiche and tomato

of BA’s new Australian-born customer experience

Drouhin Clos de la Garenne Premier Cru Puligny

jam. Plus Vegemite if you want it.

chief, Troy Warfield. Whatever it is, BA’s service

Montrachet 2010, Château d’Yquem Sauternes

Service Like Virgin and Air New Zealand, Qantas

has vastly improved. The crew really want to spoil

Premier Cru Superieur 2008.

has not forgotten that what makes a great airline

you and the pukka pilots are back in the First

Service Attentive but a little stiff and over-

is personality. Almost all its staff are Australian

cabin again, meeting and greeting.

deferential. Like the country whose name it bears,

and they mix formality with how-ya’-goin’ charm.

Extras BA is smartening up its First lounges,

Qatar Airways needs to loosen its dishdasha.

You really do feel as if you are in Australia.

which is good as they still lag behind Virgin’s

Extra No chauffeur service, which seems odd.

Extras Chauffeur service, spa treatments in the

world-beating Clubhouses. Concorde Bars have

But the best washbags, with large-sized Armani

lounge’s Aurora Spa, and a First Host to assist

just opened in Singapore and Dubai, which

products. Luggage allowance: 110lb.

with travel needs. Luggage allowance: 110lb.

EtihAd AirwAys

singAporE AirlinEs

James Hogan, the head of the UAE carrier, thinks

One of the perks of being first to get an A380 is that

EmirAtEs

airlines have become too much like airlines and not

you can name your first class something different:

enough like hotels. “An airline is aeroplanes. We’re

Suites Class. In other planes it remains first.

Emirates is the world’s biggest global carrier, flying

a hospitality company. We want to create more of

Seat A mini-room with Italian leather walls and

more than 143 billion international passenger miles a

a boutique hotel experience,” he says. His approach

plantation-style shutters. Some people like

year, compared with around 87 billion miles flown by

is working and setting new standards.

being behind walls (albeit smart ones), while

United and Lufthansa. It’s also among the most

Seat High-walled First Apartments off a single

others prefer to see and be seen.

influential airlines, breaking up old alliances and

aisle come with a Poltrona Frau leather seat

Technology Wi-Fi and more than 1,000 hours

introducing innovative perks, notably showers.

and separate chaise longue that converts into

of on-demand entertainment, plus a 23in screen.

Seat Emirates is all about privacy. The seat is a

an 80in bed. There’s a wardrobe, chilled mini-bar

Food The only airline to offer both Krug Grand

suite, with sliding doors that you can close and

and vanity unit. Adjacent apartments can

Cuvée and Dom Perignon 2004 – with caviar.

retire behind. There’s also a private minibar.

be combined to create a double bed.

And that’s before take off. Once in the air, you can

Technology With more than 2,000 channels of

Technology More than 100 films, 250 TV shows,

enjoy the meal you ordered when you booked,

movies and TV shows, on demand and in multiple

16 radio channels, a 350 CD library and up to

from lobster thermidor to a cheese toastie.

languages, this is the best entertainment system

60 games. Seat-to-seat calls and e-chat means

Service The best in the sky.

in the sky. Wi-Fi and personal mobile-phone

you can commiserate with anyone confined

Extras Singapore Airlines knows that the worst

services are speedy and simple to use.

to economy. Wi-Fi.

part of air travel is the airport. So at its Changi

Food The best breakfast at 39,000ft. Wake,

Food Meals are prepared by a dedicated onboard

home, first-class passengers have their own

shower with Bulgari soaps and shampoos, and

chef who can create such “off-menu” items as

terminal and pass through private immigration

when you get back to your seat there will be a

made-to-order eggs, rib-eye steak or grilled fish.

and security. An escalator leads to the first-class

fresh ginger, mint and lime wake-me-up juice,

With a flute of Billecart-Salmon champagne.

lounge where, if you are flying on an A380, you

and a cappuccino with the Emirates logo picked

Service Rivals Singapore Airlines for the most

are welcomed into the Private Room, which is

out in the chocolate on top – as well as a cheeky

attentive in the sky. The Residence, Etihad’s new

strictly for Suites Class passengers only. The only

glass of Dom Pérignon 2004, if you like.

three-bedroom suite in first class, even comes

black mark against Singapore is the livery of its

Service Global, as befits the world’s largest airline

with its own Savoy-trained butler.

A380s – it’s as bad as the interiors are good.

whose hub is a centre of globalisation. Speak any

Extras Etihad has joined Emirates in offering

Luggage allowance: 110lb.

language and the crew probably will, too.

a shower. It has also introduced The Lobby, an

Extras Chauffeurs to and from the airport.

on-board area with seats, tables and a large-

First-class cabins compared are on the Airbus

Excellent if robust Thai therapists in the Timeless

screen TV showing live sport. Etihad’s lounge in

A380 for Emirates, Qatar, Etihad, Singapore and

Abu Dhabi has a cigar bar, and the airline offers

Qantas, and the Boeing 787-9 for British Airways.

a chauffeur service. Luggage allowance: 140lb.

Each is the airline’s flagship cabin.

Service is more confident than it has been in years.

the best livery in the skies and the most stylish

feature black Nero marble, oak flooring and 70s-style lounge chairs. No chauffeur-driven cars, but a whopping 210lb luggage allowance.

Spas in Emirates’ lounges, and retro touches such as on-board stationery. The only drawback is

turn left to lie down Layout of BA’s new Dreamliner, with just eight First Class seats

ultratravel 69

LUXURY UNDER SAIL WITH NOBLE CALEDONIA BOOK EARLY & SAVE £300 PER PERSON

island hopping in

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS Jost Van Dyke St Barts

the west indies A luxurious voyage under sail from Antigua to Barbados with Henry Blofeld aboard the Sea Cloud II – 24th January to 7th February 2017

St Kitts Antigua

CARIBBEAN SEA

J

Iles des Saintes

ust when winter seems to be endless, it is the perfect time to escape to the warmth and beauty of the West Indies. Our comprehensive and diverse island hopping itinerary includes some of the better known islands in addition to some which are off the beaten path of the big cruise ships in the region. Every island is different, each with its own unique character and by and large we will head for the smaller less visited places. Occasionally our paths will cross with the mega-factory like cruise ships and it is at such times we will appreciate even more, how fortunate we are to be enjoying our classic ship that embodies all the best sailing traditions.

For the Love of Cricket – Henry Blofeld The West Indies are of course synonymous with cricket and so we are delighted that Henry Blofeld will be joining us onboard for this cruise.

‘Blowers’ is one of the best known and best loved sports journalists of all time. With his trademark bow-tie, his unmistakably fruity tones and his delightfully idiosyncratic observations, both on and off the cricket feld, Blowers has become a national institution. During our voyage, in addition to our usual excursions we have also arranged some cricket focused tours which will include the opportunity to meet one of the many legends of West Indies cricketing history.

The Itinerary in Brief Day 1 London to Antigua. Fly by scheduled fight. Upon arrival transfer to Sea Cloud II and embark.

Day 2 Antigua. This morning’s tour will include Nelson’s Dockyard, beautifully located in English Harbour. In the afternoon either spend time on one of the local beaches or join a cricketing tour of the island including the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Stanford Cricket Ground and the Antigua Cricket Ground (ARG). Keith Fredericks (Freddo), a cricketer who represented Antigua at regional level and Head Groundsman at the ARG will delight in giving a talk and guided tour of the club house and the ground.

Day 3 St Barts. Tender ashore this morning at St Barthelemy, a gem of an island.

Very French in atmosphere it is tiny, only eight square miles, yet is one of the most

beautiful in the whole of the Caribbean.

Day 4 Jost Van Dyke, BVI. Jost van Dyke, the smallest of the main islands in the British Virgin Islands, is a mountainous volcanic object of beauty with fewer than 300 inhabitants. We will drop anchor this morning in White Bay and after a short Zodiac ride land on the beach and spend the day relaxing and enjoy a beach BBQ. Day 5 St Kitts. We will make a landing this afternoon by tender on the delightful island of St Kitts. The atmosphere here is wonderfully relaxed and full of oldworld charm. Either wander the street of Basseterre including the colonial buildings or on an island tour see the impressive UNESCO fortress at Brimstone Hill, the Romney Gardens and Fairview Great House.

Day 6 Iles des Saintes. The eight island Iles des Saintes archipelago dots the waters off the southwest coast of Guadeloupe. This

Sea Cloud II Whilst there are many large sailing ships offering passages around the world there are few if any that can compare in terms of luxury to Sea Cloud II. Watching the 29,600 square feet of sails being set by hand is a truly magical sight. Built to accommodate 96 passengers in fve star luxury, she offers a range of beautifully appointed suites and cabins which are furnished with great style. All accommodation features outside views and the bathrooms are unusually spacious and extremely comfortable. Public areas include an elegant lounge, library, ftness centre, boutique, lido bar and hospital. The single sitting dining room is airy and modern and the quality of the cuisine and service will be to the highest of standards, as one would expect on a Sea Cloud II cruise. Relax on the Lido deck and experience the natural grandeur of travelling under sail, rekindling memories of a bygone age.

afternoon tender ashore and explore the charming town of Tere-de-Haut at leisure or walk up to Fort Napoleon and visit the museum focusing on the Battle of the Saintes.

Day 7 Dominica. Stepping back in time, the island of Dominica is still the primitive garden that Columbus frst sighted in 1493.

An area of tropical rainforests, fowers of incredible beauty and animals that exist nowhere else in the world. On a morning tour we will explore Cabrits National Park and see the remains of Fort Shirley.

Day 8 Martinique. Martinique is a truly cosmopolitan island and a Department of France. This morning from our berth enjoy a stroll around Fort de France, a small scale combination of New Orleans and Nice.

Day 9 St Lucia. A splendidly rugged island of towering mountains, lush green valleys and acres of banana plantations. We will moor in sight of the island’s best known feature, the twin peaks of the Pitons and tender ashore to the nearby town of Soufriere where we will visit the bubbling sulphur springs. Our island tour will also include the splendid botanical gardens, a delight for photographers with walkways surrounded by bright tropical fowers and towering trees.

Day 10 Bequia. This delightful Grenadine island is totally unspoilt, a place of pure escapism in a charming old world atmosphere. This afternoon tender ashore and visit the Hegg Turtle Sanctuary followed by time to relax on one of the stunning beaches or for some swimming or snorkelling.

Day 11 Grenada. After a relaxing morning at sea, this afternoon moor in the picturesque capital of St George’s and explore this wonderful Windward island which is lush and verdant with spice plantations, tropical forests, secluded coves and nature trails. For the cricket fans among us there will be the opportunity to visit the National Cricket Stadium where we will be regaled with stories and history of cricket in the West Indies, before making our way to the Spice Basket Cricket Museum.

For full details on this holiday call us today on 020 7752 0000 for your copy of our brochure. Alternatively view or request online at www.noble-caledonia.co.uk

LEEWARD ISLANDS

Dominica

WINDWARD ISLANDS

Martinique St Lucia

Barbados Bequia

Grenada

Tobago

Day 12 Tobago. This morning we will explore the natural wonders of the island of Tobago. An island drive will take us to the Argyle Waterfall for a refreshing swim and a chance to explore the lush surrounding forest. Alternatively enjoy a boat trip over to Little Tobago one of the most important sea bird sanctuaries in the Caribbean.

Day 13 Barbados. It is said that Bajans eat, drink and sleep cricket so it seems ftting that our cruise should end here. This afternoon choose between an island drive or a cricket tour including the Legends of Barbados Cricket Museum.

Day 14 Barbados to London. Disembark after breakfast and transfer to the airport for your return scheduled fight to London.

Day 15 London. Morning arrival.

Prices & Inclusions Special offer prices per person based on double occupancy range from £6995 for a category E deluxe cabin to £9295 for a category A luxury owner’s suite. Cabins for sole use from £6795.

What’s Included:

• Economy class scheduled air travel • 13 nights aboard Sea Cloud II on a full board basis • House wine, beer and soft drinks with lunch and dinner • Tour leader & guest speaker • Shore excursions • Gratuities • Transfers NB. Ports subject to change and weather conditions. All special offers are subject to availability. Travel insurance is not included in the price. Our current booking conditions apply to all reservations.

SMALL SHIPS - BIG EXPERIENCES

intelligence

top dog Jeff Koons’ Balloon dog (Blue) in the new Broad gallery (below) in LA

DIRECTOR’S CUT The inside track on the world’s galleries and museums The Broad Los angeLes

What should visitors ensure they see?

Opened on September 20, the $140 million

Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room,

institution showcases the 2,000 works of

an immersive, mirror-lined chamber

postwar and contemporary art amassed by

housing a seemingly endless LED light

the philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad.

display. And, on the third floor, a gallery of

Here its director Joanne Heyler (right) guides

Cy Twomblys, which are among Edythe

Ultratravel through the new landmark.

Broad’s favourite works.

How should first-time visitors

How long do you need to see it all?

structure their visit?

We are a mid-sized museum, and so if

From the museum’s organic lobby space,

you have 45 minutes or an hour, you

the most controversial work?

depth. We have the largest collection of

I would recommend they go up the 105ft

will see everything, other than Icelandic

Kara Walker’s large panorama of cut-out

works by Cindy Sherman and Jeff Koons,

escalator to our sky-lit third floor, where

artist Ragnar Kjartansson’s The Visitors,

silhouettes, African’t, is often difficult for

and one of the largest of Roy Lichtenstein.

we feature pieces from 1960s Andy

a 64-minute video installation shown on

people to experience, as it depicts terrible

What’s unique about the institution?

Warhols, Roy Lichtensteins and Jeff Koons

nine simultaneous screens.

real and imagined activities from colonial

The building by Diller Scofidio + Renfro is

to newer works by Kara Walker, Andreas

Your favourite work?

African and the antebellum South.

almost as much a part of the visit as the

Gursky and others. An alternative is to

I tend to get obsessed with whatever

Athough her work is rendered in the

art; it’s a sculpture in itself.

start in the ground-floor galleries, which

artwork for which I’ve found the right wall.

usually prim, Victorian mode of cut-out

The Broad, 221 South Grand Avenue,

show newer works. At the end I would

Very recently we installed Nigeria-based

silhouettes, it pulls no punches.

Los Angeles (thebroad.org)

recommend visiting our neighbouring

artist El Anatsui’s Red Block, a tapestry-

the institution’s greatest strength?

John O’Ceallaigh

restaurant, Otium, headed by former

like artwork made of metal bottle seals

The Broads have been collecting art for

For more ideas on what to do in LA,

French Laundry chef Tim Hollingsworth.

strung together with wire. It is stunning.

some 50 years, so the collection has great

visit discoverlosangeles.com

edited by Lisa GrainGer

EUROPE’S BESt nEw sKi ChaLets

pEAK VIEWINg The indoor pool at Mont Tremblant, above, in the French resort of Méribel

It seemed impossible that chalets could get bigger, or more luxe, but they have. The hottest property this winter is, unsurprisingly, in the chalet motherland of Courchevel.

The sleek Blossom Hill, in Le Praz 1650, not only has matt concrete walls and sleek furnishings that lend it an industrial warehouse vibe, but an indoor/outdoor infinity pool with mountain views, a private cinema with a 10ft-wide screen and a wine cellar with its own kitchen (oxfordski.com; from £11,850 a week b&b, sleeping 10).

One valley over, in Méribel, the game-changing new kid on the block is Mont Tremblant, which blends traditional Savoyard touches – scalloped wooden eaves, vaulted ceilings and stone columns – with state-of-the-art

technology, modern art and a spa that leads out to a large heated outdoor pool and hot tub (luxurychaletcollection.com; from £22,500 a week chalet-board, sleeping 12). In Switzerland, Verbier’s Place Blanche is pushing the luxury level up another notch.

Initially built as two W Verbier private residences, and thus in the midst of the ski, party and shopping action, the rustic chalet has one of the resort’s biggest master bathrooms in which guests can stargaze while they bathe beneath an enormous skylight (skiverbierexclusive.com; from £27,000 a week chalet-board, sleeping 10).

Over in France, Chalet Jajalp in Morzine is the quintessence of Alpine sophistication, with its

picture windows, aged wood and silky soft cashmere and tweed furnishings – although the doubleheight living areas, which encircle a dramatic two-storey glass wine tower, and its wraparound terrace and sunken Jacuzzi are more super-home than ski-chalet (consensiochalets.co.uk; £15,975 per week chalet-board, sleeping 10). Finally, while Baita 1697 doesn’t offer floating staircases or infinity pools, it delivers something even rarer: luxury catered chalet accommodation in Italy, with six cosy bedrooms, living areas within the 17th-century farmhouse’s vaulted stables, and a timber hot tub on the hayloft terrace (baita1697.com; from £12,150 per week chalet-board).

Gabriella Le Breton

ultratravel 71

intelligence

TRAv E L BY n UM B E RS

5

Weight in ounces of the hair produced annually by the average cashmere goat

879

Days spent in space by Russian commander of the International Space Station, Gennady Padalka

1,500

Cost in dollars per pound of the scales of the increasingly endangered pangolin in the East

11,500,000

M ASTERCLASS TEQUILA Rande Gerber (above right), co-owner of Casamigos Tequila

of Jalisco and are at least seven years old. After harvest,

with his friends George Clooney (above left) and Mike Meldman,

the agave piña, or hearts, are roasted for 72 hours in

gives us the lowdown on the newly fashionable Mexican liquor

traditional brick ovens, and then the liquid is fermented for

Bottles of wine exported from Georgian vineyards in 2010, mostly to Ukraine

80 hours, then aged in American oak barrels that were Why did you start making tequila?

previously used for storing fine whisky.

Because George and I like to drink it! We were spending a lot

What ingredients make a good tequila great?

of time in Mexico and, as you do in Mexico, were drinking a

We use only the piña, which is the heart, and the best and

lot of tequila: some really expensive, some not so expensive,

juiciest party of the agave, and a special yeast.

some good and some not so good. But we never found the

How should tequila be drunk?

perfect one that didn’t have to be covered up with salt or

Neat or on the rocks, the way George and I drink it, although

lime, that we could drink all night without being hungover.

there is no “right” way or temperature.

So, with a distiller, we developed a brand ourselves.

Which are the best cocktails that use tequila?

Describe what a great tequila tastes like

Margaritas and Palomas are popular, but the spirit works in

There is no “standard” taste. We make three types: one crisp

classics like Bloody Marys, Sours, and Dark and Stormys, too.

and clean, one soft and slightly oaky, and one aged in oak

Which bars serve great tequila?

for 14 months, which gives it a lingering, smooth finish.

In London: Soho House, La Bodega Negra, the Beaufort Bar

How is tequila made?

at The Savoy and The American Bar at The Beaumont.

Our master distiller hand-selects the finest Weber’s blue

Great places to buy it?

agaves, which are grown in the rich clay soil and cool climate

Selfridges.com and speciality sites like 31dover.com.

A LITTLE PLACE I KNOW RHO D ES COT TAG E C a pe Tow n

B

oschendal has long been a

While the interiors and the food

favourite of South African visitors.

served by the in-house chef are

Settled by Huguenots, then bought

knockout (exotic fruit and golden-

by Cecil John Rhodes in 1898 as a

yolked eggs Florentine for breakfast

private home, the wine estate has

under oak trees, Cape Malay curries

become a place renowned for its

on lamplit verandahs at night), the

elegant jazz concerts and outdoor

cottage’s USP is its privacy. Set in the

picnics, its historic cellars and its

heart of the working farm, backed by

elegant 18th-century antique-filled

spectacular mountains, it is gloriously

farmhouse. What it has never been

quiet, the only sounds those of birds

known for, though, is its

and the occasional chug of a passing

accommodation. Which is why, in

tractor or the laughter of fruit-pickers.

the past year, its new South African

Should guests ever want to leave,

owners have launched not only

bicycles can be arranged, rods found

beautifully appointed self-catering

for fishing in the dams, and hiking-

cottages in its former stables and

renowned colonial architect Herbert

yellowwood detailing, dados and

trail maps provided. In addition,

dairy, and The Werf, a new farm-to-

Baker, looks every inch the traditional

ornate plasterwork, has every modern

there’s a fresh-water pool in which to

fork restaurant whose dishes are all

manor house, situated in the foothills

amenity, elegantly updated by leading

splash and, over the road, the

created from produce sourced from

of the Groot Drakenstein mountains,

South African designer Dominic

beautiful old original farmhouse to

within 15 miles, but also a private villa,

and surrounded by 4,940 acres of

Touwen, who has combined old

visit, alongside a farm shop, wine

created from Rhodes’s own cottage.

vineyards, orchards and oak-fringed

African maps, rich fabrics and antique

cellar and children’s playground.

From the outside, the thatched Cape

gardens. Inside, though, the three-

furnishings with such 21st-century

From R10,000/£500 a night, sleeping

Dutch-style home, designed by

bedroomed whitewashed house, with

basics as Wi-Fi and power-showers.

up to eight (boschendal.com).

72 ultratravel

So U v EnI R SEARCh

An adobe building in Santa Fe isn’t an obvious place to find exquisite chocolate. But that’s the home of Kakawa, whose owners are such serious chocoholics that they have spent years unearthing historic recipes, from a dark pre-battle sharpener given to Aztek warriors to the preferred sweet tipple of Thomas Jefferson.

Although queues also form for its endorphin-inducing brownies, its specialty is chocolate elixirs: thick shots served in pretty espresso cups, which can be recreated at home using ready-made mixes.

Highly recommended is the Mayan Full Spice, an exotic concoction with a warming chilli kick (kakawachocolates.com).

Jade Mountain… where open aired luxury rooms meet the natural beauty of

ST LUCIA

Wrap yourself in the scenic splendour of St Lucia staying in one of Jade Mountain’s 29 luxury Sanctuaries. Each suite provides sweeping spaces where bedroom, living area and extravagant private infinity pools glide into one another to form extraordinary platforms floating out into nature.

With the fourth wall entirely absent, Jade Mountain’s sanctuaries are stage-like settings from which to embrace the full glory of St Lucia’s Pitons World Heritage Site and the Caribbean Sea. Add to this modern design, luxury living and unique resort experiences where guests can enjoy 600 acres of pristine beach as well as world class cuisine using produce from the resort’s very own organic farm and chocolate laboratory.

0844·874·0882 www.dialaflight.com

Enjoy 7 nights in a Star Sanctuary Double Pool Suite from £3449pp including breakfast, Virgin Atlantic flights and a $250 resort credit for dining, spa treatments and excursions.

16 Apr - 24 May 2016

T

‘I loved Interrailing: that newfound freedom, and sensation of being young and conquering the world’

he Spanish-born German actor won several awards for Salvador, for his portrayal of Salvador Puig Antich, the last person executed by Franco in 1974, and worldwide acclaim for his

role in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds.

But he is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Niki Lauda in Rush, for which he was nominated for multiple best supporting actor awards. A polyglot, he is an avid traveller who enjoys wild camping as much as palatial hotels. He is currently starring in Burnt, released last week, and in two upcoming films, Colonia and Captain America: Civil War. How many holidays do you take a year?

As many as I can, in my unpredictable life. This year I went to Chile and southern France. Chile was exceptional, camping with my girlfriend.

Torres del Paine was breathtaking; every day was different and often we had it to ourselves. We went to Tierra del Fuego, which feels like the end of the world, and then on to bizarre Easter Island, with its statues, and finally Valparaíso, one of the nicest cities, with a really poetic feel.

What do you need for a perfect holiday?

I get bored easily. I need to see things: a mix of city and nature is ideal. I spent time in Shanghai and Beijing, then went to the hotel at the Great Wall (communebythegreatwall.com), where every house was built by a different architect. It was wonderful and I loved walking the Wall alone.

Travelling life Daniel Brühl

ICH UND KAMINSKI © WARNER BROS/X-VERLEIH

Hiking in Chile, backpacking in Brazil, visiting Mayan ruins in Mexico, drinking pastis in France… this celebrated actor loves to roam Any specific country you enjoy revisiting?

twice a year – we have a house outside

Michelin stars in Spain and two in Tokyo. I own a

places and met some mad people. Or in Mexico,

Mexico. I love Oaxaca, Mazunte and Mexico City,

Barcelona. Although I was squashed between my

tapas bar in Berlin (barraval.de), but it never tastes

I went with a couple of drunk guys in their van,

and I’m half-Spanish, so I can communicate with

brother and sister, I loved being on the road.

the same because Spanish produce is so good.

then thought, “That could have gone wrong!”

the people, and I love their energy. Plus, I’ve

Do you travel light?

Favourite place for a drink?

Which parts of Germany should we visit?

always been fascinated by the Aztecs and

I try to. The best suitcases are Rimowa, which are

I love pastis, and there is no better place for that

Apart from Berlin, probably Bavaria and Baden-

Mayans. On the last trip I saw as many ruins as

light and indestructible. I just throw everything in.

than southern France. In Baron the exquisite La

Württemberg, where the countryside is pretty

I could, between Tulum and Guatemala, then

Your favourite city for a weekend away?

Maison d’Ulysse (lamaisondulysse.com) has a wild

and as German as you get. Hamburg is nice too.

some of the pretty architectural cities, like San

Barcelona. I have a place there, and in Berlin.

garden and a boules pitch. So, perhaps there.

What should we do in Berlin?

Cristóbal and Antigua in Guatemala, and Lago

Gràcia is my favourite neighbourhood. It has

Most romantic room?

Enjoy the nightlife. So many cities in Europe have

de Altiplano, with its weirdly coloured lakes.

beautiful squares and great restaurants, such as

There are so many, whether it’s the Hôtel du

become boring at night, but Berlin is very vibrant.

Your best holiday ever?

La Pepita (lapepitabcn.com) or La Panxa del Bisbe

Cap-Eden-Roc (hotel-du-cap-eden-roc.com)

The best area is Neukölln, next to Kreuzberg.

The first without my parents. It was the sensation

(0034 93 2137 049), where Xavier Codina serves

in Antibes or somewhere simple. The Bauer in

The best airline?

of newfound freedom, which I never felt again.

tapas, but it’s refined, creative and delicious.

Venice (bauervenezia.com) is also wonderful.

As a German, I’d like to say Lufthansa, but not any

We Interrailed. Most of the time we were just on a

Great bars there?

The most glamorous room?

more. Probably Emirates (emirates.com). It’s

train or at a train station, but it was a wonderful

Bobby Gin (bobbygin.com). The Spanish love gin,

It’s fun to experience those great old traditional

comfortable, punctual and the food is amazing.

feeling of being young and conquering the world.

which they drink out of huge wine glasses. And

European hotels, like the Bristol (lebristolparis.

Favourite places to stay in the UK?

More recently?

there’s a bar next to La Pepita, and a traditional

com) in Paris, the Baur au Lac (bauraulac.ch) in

Cornwall. I found it romantic and weird. I also

My girlfriend has forced me to travel like I used

one by the market in Gràcia. It’s one of my

Zürich, or the Hotel Sacher (sacher.com) in Vienna.

loved the roughness in the north: the music and

to: with a backpack, sleeping in very simple

favourite things to do: go to the boqueria.

The most remote place you’ve been?

industrial charm. I’d love to live in London, too.

places. You end up in wonderful spots you find

Favourite restaurant abroad?

Finisterre in Chile – the end of the world.

Where next?

by chance: we came across a posada run by

There are exceptional places in Spain, particularly

Have you ever been on safari?

Peru, perhaps, to explore the desert. Or Myanmar,

a French couple in a jungle in Brazil, somewhere

San Sebastián. Arzak is great (arzak.info). El Celler

No. I am fascinated by animals and nature, but

before it changes too much.

between São Paulo and Rio, which was beautiful.

de Can Roca (cellercanroca.com) is, for me, the

not by sitting in a car watching them.

Advice when travelling?

Earliest memory of travelling abroad?

best in the world. And Carme Ruscalleda, who

The roughest you’ve ever travelled?

Don’t fear too much, or you won’t see the world.

Driving from Germany to Spain, which we did

specialises in vegetable dishes and has three

Interrailing. Also, in Guatemala, we slept in dodgy

Interview by Lisa Grainger

74 ultratravel

CHANEL